Fushigi Yuugi: The Rising Threat
by inuphantom13
Summary: My first FY fanfic. Someone's back, and you won't like who it is. Miaka, Taka, Yui, Chichiri and Tasuki will have to team up with a few new faces to fight off the Rising Threat. Eventually becomes a ChichiriOC and TasukiOC! updated: ch. 16
1. Meeting With The Gods

Fushigi Yuugi: The Rising Threat

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Konnichiwa minna-san, I'm Inuphantom13, aka IP. And this is my first ever Fushigi Yuugi story!!

Crystal - And since you forgot to say it, I will. IP doesn't own any of the FY characters. Anyway, why do I have a feeling that you just made this story to be able to include Chichiri in something?

Chichiri - No da?

IP - Who said that…? (glomps Chichiri)

Chichiri - Why me, no da?

IP - Yeah, you think _you've_ got it bad? I feel sorry for Tasuki.

Chichiri - Doushite, no da?

Piksy - DID SOMEBODY SAY TASUKI!?

Chichiri - (O.O)

IP - _That's_ why.

Tasuki - (gulp) (tries to sneak away) Quietly, quietly…

Piksy - TASUKI!! (tackles Tasuki)

Tasuki - GAH!! (O.O) (gets pinned down) SOMEBODY HELP ME!!

AS - No stopping her now. Well, it's been nice knowing you.

Tasuki - BUT I'VE NEVER EVEN _MET_ YOU PEOPLE!! CHICHIRI, DO SOMETHIN'!!

Chichiri - (is about to help, but receives death-glare from both IP & Piksy) Anou…I-I don't think I should get involved, na no da. ( /.\ )

((IP - I bet you all wanna know who the heck these people are. Well, you know who Chichiri and Tasuki are (hopefully), and you know who I am. Crystal is my made-up character, who (most of the time) is the complete opposite of me. Piksy (Piksy101) & AS (Arora-sama) are my friends. Piksy is crazy, hyper, and obsessed with Tasuki (which you probably figured out by now) and AS is less crazy and hyper than Piksy (but she has her moments), and is obsessed with…well…you'll find out soon enough! (n.n) That's all the people you need to know for now (since I'm hoping everyone knows who the warriors of Suzaku/Seiryuu are)))

IP - You made the right choice! (n.n)

Piksy - (drags Tasuki away)

Chichiri - This is gonna be a long story, no da.

IP - (hugs Chichiri) (.)

Chichiri - (sigh) I feel too loved, no da.

_Meanwhile, a few yards away…_

Tasuki - SOMEBODY GET THIS GIRL OFFA ME!!

Piksy - Fine, I'll get off. (gets off)

Tasuki - Thank you Suzaku!!

Piksy - Hey, is that Nakago stripping!? (points in opposite direction)

Tasuki - Nani?! Doko?! Get a camera!! (looks (XP))

Piksy - Wait, how does he even know what a camera is? Oh well, doesn't matter as long as it worked! (XD)

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Piksy - (finishing tying Tasuki to a nearby tree) There! That should do it!

Tasuki - (is flailing around) DAMMIT!! THAT'S THE THIRD TIME I FELL FER THAT!! (first two times were in book 5, but I sorta changed what distracted him (XP))

((IP - You'd think that he was smart enough, after falling for that sort of trick 2 times already, to have seen that coming, but I guess not (n.n)))

Piksy - Now I need to find someone who'll perform a marriage ceremony between a crazed fan and a character hostage. TO THE INTERNET! (runs off)

Tasuki - I don't know whether t' be scared or just break down 'n cry. So I think I'll do both. WAHHH!! (starts crying hysterically out of fear and continues flailing)

_Meanwhile, Back With Chichiri, IP, Crystal, and AS…_

IP - Chichiri!

AS - Hotohori!

IP - Chichiri!

AS - Hotohori!

IP - CHICHIRI!

AS - HOTOHORI!

IP - CHICHIRI!!

AS - HOTOHORI!!

IP - CHICHIRI!!

AS - You know what? This is getting us nowhere.

IP - So what do you think we should do to prove which one is the strongest and the overall best?

AS - BATTLE TO THE DEATH!!

IP - Uh, news flash, Hotohori's already dead.

AS - …………………Yeah, well, not in these disclaimers, he's not! (IP - It's true, in these disclaimers, everyone's alive! (n.n))

Chichiri - This is ridiculous, no da!

Hotohori - Yeah! Everyone knows that _I'm_ the strongest and overall best.

Chichiri - No da?! No offense, your majesty, but you _know_ that I'm stronger than you, na no da!

Hotohori - Well, even _if_ you're stronger--which you're not--I look _so_ much better than you.

IP - Yeah? Well, I disagree. Chichiri's cute _and_ cool. You…you look like a woman.

Chichiri - (O.O) I don't think you should have said that, no da.

IP - Why not?

Nuriko - (runs in, sends IP flying) HOW DARE YOU SAY THAT ABOUT MY BELOVED HOTOHORI-SAMA!!

Chichiri - (-.-") That's why.

IP - (swirly-eyes) (gets back up, rubs head) (n.n) Yeah, you're right. _You're_ the only man-woman here.

(Oooh, bad move)

Nuriko - (vein pop)

Chichiri - This…looks bad, no da. ( /.\ )

_Meanwhile…_

Piksy - I finally found a person who will marry someone against their will!

Tasuki - (o.O) MARRY!? ((IP - Uh, hello, didn't you hear her when she said "I need to find someone who will perform _a marriage ceremony_ between a crazed fan and a character hostage"?))

Person - We are gathered here today to forcibly bond these two teens against their will. Is there anyone here…

Tasuki - (opens mouth to say something)

Person - …besides the groom…

Tasuki - (shuts mouth, shoulders slump down)

Person - …who has a reason these two should not be wed?

IP - Dun dun dun! Will they be wed? Or will someone come to Tasuki's rescue? Find out in the next disclaimer!

Chichiri - (thinking) Poor Tasuki, no da.

IP - Hmm, maybe we should have our own wedding!

Chichiri - (O.o) No da?!

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

((...)) used for A/N and CoA/N (CoAuthoress Notes, which would be from AS, Piksy, or Crystal)

Chapter 1 - Meeting With The Gods

"Ahh! Finally! It's over!" Miaka exclaimed at the sound of the bell, standing up and stretching a bit. "We're finally done with those stupid finals!"

((The Story Thus Far: In her third year of middle school, Yuuki Miaka was sucked into the ShiJinTenChiSho and she became the Suzaku no miko (priestess of Suzaku). Her duty was to summon the great seikun (beast-god) Suzaku, who would grant her three wishes. She eventually did summon Suzaku, and her final wish was for Tamahome, the man she loved and one of the seven Suzaku shichiseishi (celestial warriors), to become a man of her world. About 6 months after that, Tamahome was reborn into Miaka's world, but he didn't have all of his memories of his life in the book. Instead, they'd been transformed into stones, and Suzaku had asked Miaka and the warriors to gather them, or risk Tamahome disappearing forever. They also had to defeat Tenkou, a majin (demon god). After a few months (in Miaka's world's time), they'd managed to gather all of the stones, and Tamahome had fully become a man of Miaka's world. They'd also defeated Tenkou ((IP - Or so they thought (insert evil laugh here))). They said their parting words to the seishi, and to the world of the book, and started they're life together in Miaka's world. Everything was going smoothly for them, even Miaka's parents approved of her being with Tamahome. But little did they know, that while they were living the easy life, the kami were once again in need of help…))

Miaka left the building with her friend, Hongo Yui, who was part of the same story as she was, at one time. Only unlike Miaka, who was the Suzaku no miko, because of an incident and plenty of misunderstandings, Yui was the Seiryuu no miko (priestess of Seiryuu), and thus, she was Miaka's enemy. But eventually, everything was sorted out between the two of them, and now they've gone back to being best friends.

"So, you going to meet up with Taka?" Yui asked, swinging her briefcase over her shoulder.

"Yeah, we're going out to eat tonight. For some reason, he insisted on going out. And I was gonna cook him up a big meal too!" Miaka whined.

_I don't blame him for insisting._ Yui thought, sweatdropping.

"Oh well! As long as I'm with Taka, I'm happy!" Miaka said happily.

"Miaka!" Taka exclaimed, waving to Miaka.

"Oh, Taka! You waited for me?" Miaka asked happily, running up to him.

((Note: Sukunami Taka is Tamahome's full reincarnation, who now lives happily with Miaka in her world.))

Yui followed, and stood next to Miaka. "Hey Taka."

"Hey Yui. How're things going with Tetsuya?" Taka asked.

"Good, he just asked me to go on another date with him this weekend." Yui said.

"Oh right, Yui-chan, Taka, are you guys free next week?" Miaka asked.

"Well, I'm free next weekend." Yui said.

"And I think I'm free next weekend too. But if not, I can always take off. Why? You have something planned?" Taka asked.

"Well, next week'll be 1 year since we first entered the ShiJinTenChiSho. And I know that it's not much to celebrate about, but I figured that maybe we could do something together." Miaka said.

"What are you talking about? I mean, because of the book, you two were brought together. And Miaka, because of the book, all doubts between us were cleared! Even though there are plenty of bad memories from the book, we can't forget the good memories either. I think that that's reason enough to celebrate." Yui said.

"Yeah…you're right Yui-chan!" Miaka exclaimed happily. "So how's next Saturday?"

"Sounds good." Yui said.

"Sure, I've got off that day anyway." Taka said.

"Great! So I guess that we can discuss where we'll go sometime during the week?" Miaka asked.

"Okay." Yui said, then she looked at her watch. "Oh, I've got to go. I've got a meeting with the student council president today. Have fun on your date!"

"Bye!" Miaka and Taka exclaimed, waving to Yui. Then Taka turned to Miaka and said, "Well? Shall we go?"

Miaka smiled and said, "Sure, let's go."

Then the two of them walked to the bus stop, and took the bus to the restaurant. When they arrived at the restaurant, they sat down at a table, and Miaka immediately grabbed the menu.

"Hmm, so many things to choose from!" Miaka said, practically drooling on the menu.

While Miaka did that, Taka realized what he'd gotten himself into. "(TT.TT) My poor money…"

"Huh? Did you say something Taka?" Miaka asked.

"Nothing, nothing…(TT.TT)" Taka said, invisible tears streaming down his face, at the thought of all the money she was gonna cost him.

Just as he finished sulking, the waiter came.

"May I take your order?" the waiter asked.

"I'll have--" Miaka started, but she stopped. It felt like the ground was rumbling, like an earthquake, but something was odd about it. She looked at her glass of water, but it was perfectly still.

"Yes?" the waiter asked, waiting for her order.

_Doesn't he feel that? _Miaka thought to herself. She looked at Taka, who was giving her a look that said, "Don't make this anymore trouble than it needs to be."

"Oh, you can come back to us later, we're not ready to order." Miaka said, and the waiter left.

Just as the waiter left, the rumbling became more violent. Miaka and Taka quickly got up and left.

"What is this?!" Taka exclaimed, barely being able to keep his balance.

"I don't know!" Miaka exclaimed. But then, after a few more seconds, the earthquake abruptly stopped.

"What the heck was that all about?" Taka asked, regaining his full balance.

"Beats me." Miaka said. "Well, I guess we'll have to reschedule our date, huh?"

"I guess so." Taka said sadly. "Gomen Miaka."

"It's okay, It's not your fault." Miaka said, smiling. "I should get home. If my parents felt that earthquake, then they might be worried about me."

"Okay. And I know it's a bit early, but how about a kiss goodnight?" Taka asked, and he leant over and kissed Miaka on the lips, and of course, she kissed back. Then they pulled back and gazed at each other, before saying good night, and going their separate ways. ((IP - (gags) I don't know why I did that. I guess it was to keep them from being OOC. But still...(gags again) I _**hate**_ their lovey-dovey relationship! I don't know why, it just _really_ irks me.))

When Miaka got home, her mother was on the phone. "…Oh, here she is, right now." she said, then she handed Miaka the phone and said, "It's Yui."

"Thanks mom." Miaka said, as she took the phone, and went in her room. ((IP - I hope we're all assuming that this is a cordless phone.))

Once she was in her room, Miaka and Yui both asked at the same time, "Did you feel that earthquake?!"

"Well, I guess that's a yes." Yui said, chuckling. "What about Taka?"

"Hai, we both felt it. But it was strange. Even though it was so strong, everyone appeared like they didn't even feel it! Not to mention that I looked at my glass, and the water was absolutely still." Miaka said.

"Well, I guess we can just ignore it for now, since it stopped. I mean, no one was hurt, so there's nothing to worry about, right?" Yui asked.

"Right. Well, I'll see you tomorrow!" Miaka said.

"Bye." Yui said, and she hung up.

Miaka hung up too and put the phone down. "That's weird, how no one but the three of us felt that earthquake." Then her stomach grumbled and she ran downstairs, exclaiming, "I forgot! I didn't have dinner!"

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Yui put the phone down and thought to herself, _Why would only the three of us feel an earthquake that intense?_

She shrugged it off and said, "Well, it's getting late, and I have to go to school a bit earlier tomorrow, so I'll just head to bed now."

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"Ahh, that was good!" Miaka exclaimed, plopping down on her bed. "But I sure wish I could've spent the night with Taka instead."

She got ready for bed, but the thought once again crossed her mind. _Why were the three of us the only ones who felt that earthquake?_

She shook the thought away, saying, "We said we wouldn't worry about it! Besides, it didn't happen again, so why _should_ we be worried?"

Then Miaka climbed into bed, and drifted off to sleep.

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_Yuuki Miaka, Suzaku no miko…_

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_Hongo Yui, Seiryuu no miko…_

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_Seek us out…_

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Miaka and Yui both jumped up from their sleep at the same time (only they didn't know that they did it at the same time of course). Miaka exclaimed "Suzaku!" at the same time Yui exclaimed "Seiryuu!" (but it wasn't loud enough to wake anyone up)

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"What was _that_ all about?" Miaka asked to herself.

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"I wonder why I would dream of Seiryuu now, of all times." Yui said.

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"Oh well, I guess I'll figure it out tomorrow." Miaka and Yui both said, and they went back to sleep.

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The next day, Miaka and Yui both met outside the school (it was after school though). But they weren't sure if they should bring up their dream from last night. Finally, Miaka asked, "Yui-chan…I had this dream last night…"

"Actually, I did too…"

"Maybe they're connected?" Miaka asked.

"Maybe…but there's no way we can be sure right now." Yui said.

"But, and I'm just checking, you dreamt of…" Miaka said, leaving Yui to finish the sentence.

"Seiryuu. And I'm assuming that you dreamt of Suzaku?" Yui asked.

"Yeah. Maybe we should tell Taka. If all three of us felt that earthquake, and if the dreams and the earthquake are related, then Taka might be involved in this too." Miaka said.

"Involved in what?" Taka asked, as he ran up to the two girls.

"Well…" Miaka started.

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"So maybe there _was_ a reason that we were the only ones to feel that earthquake. And now that you mention the dream-thing, I didn't dream of any of the four-gods or anything, but I did have some sort of a…bad feeling last night, to say the least." Taka said.

"Last time I saw Suzaku, I was at the Takamatsu-Zuka old mound. Maybe we should go back there." Miaka said.

"Sounds like as good a lead as any." Yui said. "I'm busy today, tomorrow, and Sunday though."

"Then how about Monday?" Miaka asked.

"Sounds good." Taka said. "We'll meet at the station after school, okay?"

"Okay." Miaka and Yui both said. Then they once again went their separate ways.

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Monday finally arrived. They met at the station, and took the train to Takamatsu-Zuka, not saying a word on the trip. When they finally arrived, Miaka took them to the Seishuku no Hiroba, the place where she met Suzaku.

"Nothing out of the ordinary." Taka said.

"I guess this lead turned out to be a dead end." Yui said.

"Yeah, lets get going." Miaka said. And they turned around to leave, but two voices and a change in scenery stopped them in their tracks.

"Yuuki Miaka and Sukunami Taka…"

"Hongo Yui…"

"We need you're help."

_Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama!_ the three all thought, gasping slightly, as they stared in disbelief.

"Will you help us, Suzaku no miko, Seiryuu no miko, and Suzaku no shichiseishi Tamahome?"

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IP - Well? How was that for a first chapter?

Chichiri - Oh kami, no da. You're done with the chapter! That means…

IP - Eheheh…anyway, please R&R!


	2. The Rising Threat

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Hey people! I hope you all liked that last chapter! Oh, and (unfortunately) I don't own any of the Fushigi Yuugi characters...

FY characters - Phew!

IP - …except for Chichiri! (n.n)

Chichiri - ( /.\ ) No da…

Yuu Watase - NO YOU DON'T! HE'S _**MINE!!**_ (Along with the rest of the characters!)

IP - YEAH!? DREAM ON, BEEYATCH!! (hey, they use that word in the manga (book 9, I think) so it's okay for me to use it here!)

Everyone - (chanting) Fight! Fight! Fight!

_Meanwhile, a few yards away…_

Tasuki - (flailing and screaming) WHAT ABOUT ME!?

_Back to the rest of the characters…_

IP - (turns to chanting crowd) Wait, we're not going to fight! Why would I fight the person who _created_ most of you guys?

Chichiri - Phew! Thank goodness, no da.

AS - Doushite?

Chichiri - Because you don't want to see her when she's in a fit of rage, na no da.

AS - I've never seen _that_ happen.

Chichiri - (-.-) Well you aren't stuck with her all of the time, no da. At least you have freedom. Oh, my head hearts just _thinking_ about the last time she went into a fit of blind rage, na no da. (gets swirly-eyed)

IP - (facing Yuu Watase) Gomen nasai about the…thing…that I said before. I guess I got a bit, erm, _excited_.

Watase - It's okay, and how about this. You can do whatever you want with all of the characters, but you still have to put down in the beginning that you _don't own_ all of the characters.

IP - Done!! (glomps Chichiri) (n.n)

Watase - (smiles, rolls eyes, and leaves) (Crystal - Everyone knows that that was an absolute waste of time, seeing as that's what she was able to do before, right? (-.-"))

Chichiri - ……(sigh) How can I be mad at her, no da? (n.n)

Person - Uhh, so I'm guessing no one objects to the marriage?

Piksy - Actually…I do.

Everyone - (o.O) What?!

Tasuki - (O.O) Really?

Piksy - Yeah. I thought it over, and I figured, "why get married to Tasuki if he's not gonna love me?", so I'm gonna make him fall in love with me first, so then we can both be happy! (n.n)

Everyone - Awwwwww…

Tasuki - (blushes) (thinks) She may be a bit crazy (IP - A _bit_ crazy?), but I guess she can be pretty sweet sometimes.

Person - ……….Well you're not getting your money back! (runs off)

Piksy - (mutters) Money-grubber.

Tasuki - Uhh, hey, I'm still tied up over here!

Piksy - Whoops! (XP)

Hotohori - I've got it. (cuts rope with holy sword)

Tasuki - Thanks fer that! My arms were startin' t' fall asleep!

Piksy - Sorry about that, Tasuki. I guess I got a bit carried away, huh?

Everyone - (thinking) A _bit_?

Tasuki - 's okay.

Piksy - So you're not mad?

Tasuki - Well…I was, but not anymore, I guess…

Piksy - (smiles happily) Yay!! (n.n)

Tasuki - Heh. Yer pretty cute when ya act like that.

Piksy - (faints)

Tasuki - (O.O") Is she gonna be okay?

IP - Yeah, just give her a few minutes.

Tasuki - Phew!

IP - Why? (smirks) Were you _worried_ about her?

Tasuki - W-Who said that?

Piksy - (gets up, jumps Tasuki) Yay! Tasuki was worried about me! (n.n) (hugs Tasuki)

Tasuki - (blushes)

IP - Hey, wait a minute! Why was this disclaimer all about those two?! What about me and Chichiri?!

AS - And me and Hotohori?!

Hotohori - (n.n") Umm, I'm already married…

Nuriko - Yeah, and even if he wasn't married, he'd be _mine_!

Taka - You _are_ a man, you know.

IP - Ha ha! I have Chichiri all to myself, but you have to share Hotohori with two other people! (IP - If "I have Chichiri all to myself" means having to put up with the million other Chiri fans out there, then yeah, I do have him "all to myself" (XD))

AS - Fine, Nuriko and Houki can _have_ Hotohori! I'm switching to Nakago now! (IP - Can you say 'fickle'?)

Nakago - Eh? How did _I_ get dragged into this?

AS - (hugs Nakago)

Soi - GET AWAY FROM MY NAKAGO-SAMA!!

AS - Make me! (sticks out tongue)

Soi - FINE!! (out of blind rage, a huge thundercloud appears over where AS (and Nakago (XP)) are) (giant thunderbolt comes down)

AS - (jumps out of the way)

BBBBBBBBBBBBBZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Everyone - (O.O") (not sure how to react to the flashes of light and a certain someone getting fried)

Suboshi & Suzaku Gang - (thinking) Good riddance!

AS - NAKAGO!! Oh well. If he dies, I'm going back to Hotohori.

Hotohori - (-.-") Great.

IP - Think there's room for two in that kasa of yours?

Chichiri - I was thinking the same thing, no da. (both jump into kasa and hide for dear life)

Soi - (o.o") (gulp) Oops.

Nakago - ………………………………...

(Okay, if you don't know what he looks like, just picture roast Nakago. Mmm, yummy (XP))

IP - (sticks head out of kasa) L-Let's move onto the story.

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

((...)) used for A/N and CoA/N (CoAuthoress Notes, which would be from AS, Piksy, or Crystal)

Chapter 2 - The Rising Threat

((Note: I forgot to say, incase you didn't notice, I made it that Seiryuu was released from the scroll that he was sealed away in. I guess Taiitsukun could have been the one to do that. I mean, Seiryuu technically didn't do anything wrong. It was just the evil in the human hearts of his seishi that made him seem bad. (Well, in my opinion anyway) So now, the Seiryuu seishi can use their techniques, and now Yui can be Involved in the story again. Oh, and sorry if the Seiryuu guys (including Seiryuu himself) seem a little OOC because I've never really looked into how their characters act. (But it won't really matter much, I guess, because, well, you'll see why in this chapter) But anyway, all I know is that Nakago's a complete jerk, Soi's stuck on Nakago, Suboshi's rude and loves Yui, Tomo, Miboshi, and Ashitare are just plain weird (mostly Tomo and Ashitare though, in my opinion), and Amiboshi's really kind, but unfortunately, he's not going to have much of a role in this story, as much as I like him, because his memories were erased, so now he thinks that he's Huaike. But he might have an appearance (n.n) (I'll see if I can fit it in) But anyway, if anyone could find a way to make the remaining (uh-oh, I'm giving away a bit too much info! (XP)) Seiryuu seishi (and Seiryuu himself) less OOC, I'd appreciate it! (n.n)))

"Help you? With what?" Miaka asked.

"Yeah, we already defeated Tenkou, and what could be worse than the demon god himself?" Taka asked.

"I hate to disappoint, but it seems that Tenkou wasn't _actually_ destroyed. And now...he's gained enough power to control the emperor of the heavens. We have no way of stopping him." Suzaku said.

"What!? Tenkou is controlling Taiitsukun-sama?! But how?!" Miaka and Taka exclaimed.

"Well, it seems that in the end, Tenkou wasn't _destroyed_, but rather was badly injured and went into hiding. And now he has taken over both the emperor of the heavens and the _palace_ of the heavens as well. Since that's one of the main sources of our power, we've basically been rendered powerless. We can barely keep ourselves in these forms in this world." Seiryuu said.

"What about Genbu-sama and Byakko-sama? What happened to them?" Taka asked.

"They are as powerless as we, but their mikos and most of their seishi are already deceased. It's up to you, the remaining two mikos, and the seishi destined to protect you." Suzaku said.

"But how? All of the Seiryuu seishi are dead with the exception of Amiboshi, whose memories were erased. And I believe that about four of the Suzaku seishi are dead as well! How are we supposed to fight with such a few amount of seishi left?" Yui asked.

"Last time, the Suzaku seishi were brought back through the connection that Mt. Taikyoku has with the heavens. They didn't have physical bodies, but they _were_ still able to use their powers. Demo, wasn't Mt. Taikyoku taken over by Tenkou too?" Taka asked.

"Surprisingly, Tenkou hasn't touched Mt. Taikyoku yet. But as for the seishi, it isn't going to be as easy as last time. We've decided that it would be safer to reincarnate 5 of the shichiseishi. We've decided to choose 3 Seiryuu seishi, and 2 Suzaku seishi--"

"Only fair, seeing as two of your seishi are still alive, and one is a reincarnation already." Seiryuu scoffed, interrupting the phoenix-kami.

"Hai, well, in any case, the chosen seishi have been reincarnated, but you will have to search for them. They will be in their respective homelands, my seishi in Konan and his seishi in Kutou, of course. And, because of the little power we had even at the time, their looks have not been altered much and their ages have been magically altered to almost match their ages before their demise. It shouldn't be too hard for you to track them down. Anyway, back to the matter of Mt. Taikyoku. Tenkou hasn't touched Mt. Taikyoku at all, surprising as that may be. Actually, I believe that it's our remaining power source. Also, it might be that Tenkou can't touch Mt. Taikyoku because of all of the goddesses gathered there." Suzaku said.

"Goddesses? Oh, you mean Nyan." Miaka said.

"Nyan?" Yui asked.

"Right, you've never been to Mt. Taikyoku, have you? Well, the Nyan are goddesses, and they live at Mt. Taikyoku, along with Taiitsukun, the emperor of the heavens." Miaka explained to Yui. Then she turned to the two kami and asked, "So, what is it that you want us to do? Do you want us to destroy him or something?" ((AS - No, they want you to have tea and crumpets with the guy. Whaddya _think_ they want you to do?!))

"Precisely. And to give you passage to the other world, we have prepared two scrolls, one for each miko." Suzaku said. Then one scroll appeared in Miaka's hand, and one in Yui's. "You may all enter through either one of these scrolls, but this is if you get the chance to enter the scroll separately. Please go as often as possible and stop him, or else he might gain enough power to disturb your world as well."

Miaka, Taka, and Yui all nodded their heads, understanding what they needed to do. But then Miaka looked at Suzaku and Seiryuu both, and asked, "Uh, just out of curiosity, _who_ exactly did you pick to reincarnate?"

Suzaku chuckled, and said, "Ah, yes, I suppose that _would_ aid your search. The warriors we've chosen were Nakago, Soi, Suboshi, Nuriko, and Mitsukake."

"Hm? What about Hotohori?" Miaka asked.

"Well, he _was_ our initial choice…er…_my_ initial choice, but he just said "If I were to be reincarnated, then I would be a different person, and I think that would be a worse pain to bear, even more than remaining deceased", and he left it at that. We didn't press the issue, so we instead chose Nuriko, who was willing to go in place of Hotohori." Suzaku said.

"Oh…okay…" Miaka said, her eyes looking away. She imagined the pain Hotohori must have felt, knowing that he couldn't see his empress and child anymore. A small tear rolled down her cheek, but she quickly wiped it away before anyone noticed and turned her attention to the two kami.

"Now we've used all of our power for now, so we must go." Seiryuu said, then he looked at Yui's watch. "A device that control's time? Perfect, I shall reside there."

"And I shall remain in your communication devices." Suzaku said.

"Communication devices? Oh, our pagers." Taka said.

With that, the two kami disappeared, and the surroundings returned to normal.

"I wonder if we'll be able to stay for more than an hour this time." Miaka said.

"We shouldn't go just yet. I think we should settle down and get our information together first." Taka said.

"Okay. You two are more familiar with this whole "traveling through the scroll" thing than I am, but I have a feeling that it'd be better if we enter together through 1 scroll." Yui said.

"Why?" Miaka asked.

"Well, since Suzaku is the Konan-no-kami (God of Konan, incase I didn't translate that right), and Seiryuu is the Kutou-no-kami (God of Kutou), If I go through my scroll and you go through yours, we might end up separated." Yui said. "Just a thought."

"Yeah, but you may be right." Taka said.

"How about we all go tomorrow? We'll use my scroll." Miaka said.

"Sounds good." Yui said. Then she looked at her watch and exclaimed, "Oh man, I was supposed to meet Tetsuya a half hour ago!"

"Go ahead. We'll talk to you tomorrow and figure out a place to meet!" Miaka said.

"Okay, bye!" Yui exclaimed, and she ran off, waving goodbye.

"Bye!" Miaka and Taka exclaimed, waving back. Then they both went back to the station, and once they arrived home, they went their separate ways, their minds in other places.

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(_The Next Day, After School…_)

The three of them met outside the school.

"So, did you think of a place that we could go to enter the scroll?" Yui asked.

"Well, my parents are at work, so my house is empty. I guess that'd be the best place to go." Miaka said.

"What about Keisuke?" Yui asked. "Does he know?"

"Iie, I didn't fill him in just yet. But I'm sure that even if he happens to come home, he'll probably see the scroll and figure out the situation. He'll cover for us if anything." Miaka said.

"I guess you're right. Let's go." Yui said.

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(_A Few Minutes Later…_)

Miaka unlocked her front door, and the three of them went inside and they went upstairs to Miaka's room. Miaka opened a drawer and took out the scroll.

"You guys ready?" Miaka asked.

"Hai." they said.

"Okay, let's go!" Miaka exclaimed. Then she opened the scroll, her pager out, as Yui took out her watch, and Taka took out his pager. They put the three together and disappeared in a red-and-blue light.

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IP - Wow, that chappie had plenty of info. (n.n) Please R&R!


	3. Reunions

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Hey, I _don't own_ all of the FY characters. (Happy Miss Watase? (XP))

Chichiri - I don't think this is a good time to be joking around, no da.

IP - (sticks head out of kasa) (O.O) Gak! (quickly sticks head back in kasa on account of ki blast aimed straight for her head) What the heck did _I_ do?!

AS - Nakago! Calm down! You know that the old lady didn't mean it! She's just going blind! (And by old lady, I mean Soi!)

Soi - (big vain pop) WHAT DID YOU SAY?!

AS - (sticks tongue out (again (XD)))

IP - (sticks head out of kasa again) You _really_ like to tempt fate, don't you?

AS - Nah, I just like to piss off Miss Short Temper over here who thinks she's good enough to be with _my_ Nakago.

Soi - (surrounded in flames of fury (XD)) (out of blind rage sends an even bigger lightning bolt to where AS (and Nakago, once again (XP)) is) (lightning bolt strikes)

AS - Gah! (jumps out of the way)

**BBBBBBBBBBBBZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

Everyone - Oooooooooooohhhhhh… mostly everyone tiptoes away

Nakago - ……………………… (okay, now picture a completely burnt Nakago (XP))

AS - Ack! Again?! Soi, you baka!

Soi - (o.o") ………Oops?

IP - (just came out of kasa along with Chichiri when Nakago got fried) You know, one wonders why he doesn't dodge or put up a barrier or something. (sweatdrop) So Chichiri, any way you can transport the two of us at least a few hundred feet away from here?

Chichiri - (.) Hai, no da. (picks up kasa, throws it into the air, both disappear, then reappear where the rest of the gang is)

IP - Wow, you guys _ran_ all this way?

Chichiri - I don't blame 'em, no da.

IP - ?

Chichiri - (points to where Nakago, AS, and Soi are (everyone else ran away (XD)))

IP - (O.O") Oh.

(Okay, here's the scene. Picture it from where most of the group is, about 100 ft from where Nakago, AS, and Soi are. You hear plenty of yelling and you see occasional flashes and explosions and such (XD))

AS - (from 100 ft away) NAKAGO! CALM DOWN!! (explosion seen/heard) GAH!! CAREFUL!!

Soi - THIS IS YOUR FAULT FOR GOING WITH _MY_ NAKAGO-SAMA!!

Nakago - I'M NOT _**ANYONE'S**_!!

Everyone else - (o.o")

AS - IIE, THIS IS _YOUR_ FAULT, YOU OLD HAG!! YOU'RE WORSE THAN THAT SUNAKAKE-BABAA OF AN ORACLE!!

Soi - HOW _DARE_ YOU CALL ME AN OLD HAG!!

AS - AND HOW _DARE_ YOU THINK THAT YOU'RE GOOD ENOUGH FOR _MY_ NAKAGO!!

Nakago - DIDN'T YOU TWO HEAR WHAT I JUST SAID?! I'M NOT **ANYONE'S**!!

IP - I don't know whether to laugh or be just plain scared.

Chichiri - Nani? Why would you laugh, no da?

AS - (remember, they're still 100 or so ft. away) (.) NAKAGO! DON'T BE MAD! I STILL LOVE YA!

Soi - DON'T LISTEN TO HER! _I_ LOVE YOU MORE!!

Nakago - **WILL BOTH OF YOU LEAVE ME ALONE?!**

IP - And you're saying _that's_ not funny?

Chichiri - (stifling laughs) Hai, maybe it's a _little_ funny, na no da.

Piksy - You wouldn't think Nakago was the type of man to put up with people like that, but I guess he doesn't have the heart to blast off their heads or something. I mean, their heads shoulda gone flying at _least_ a few minutes ago.

IP - (bonks Piksy on the head) Idiot.

Piksy - (a big lump is now on her head) Jeez, can't you take a joke?

Tasuki - I don't think ya could take a joke like _that_.

Hotohori - (fuming) How is it that that Shogun has girls flocking all over him when _I'm_ obviously more beautiful?

Everyone - (rolls eyes) Yeah, yeah.

Miaka - Hey, I think they've finally calmed down!

IP - Congrats on saying your first line in these disclaimers!

Miaka - (vein pop) Yeah, by the _third chapter_.

IP - Eheheh…hey, don't feel so bad. A few people still haven't said an individual line. Like most of the Seiryuu seishi, Yui, Chiriko, and Mitsukake, I believe.

Chichiri - Anyway, do you think we should go back now, no da?

IP - Yeah, lets go.

Chichiri - (puts kesa on ground, taps shakujou on it, everyone jumps into kesa, and reappears where Nakago, AS, and Soi are)

IP - So you guys finally calmed down?

Nakago - Iie, they wore themselves out and fell asleep. (points behind him)

Soi and AS - Zzzzzzzz…(they're asleep and leaning on each other)

IP - If they stay like that, then prepare for some more discordant sounds when they wake up. (n.n")

Crystal - Should I move them?

IP - Matte. (takes out camera) (snaps picture) One for a keepsake, and…(snaps another picture)…one for the internet! (n.n)

Crystal - (-.-") Some things never change. (uses telekinesis to move the two girls and put them gently down on the ground, away from each other)

Piksy - Now that _that's_ over with…(glomps onto Tasuki) Just let me do this, onegai! I've been good! I've held back for this whole disclaimer!

Tasuki - (sigh) Fine…

Piksy - Yay! (n.n) (squeezes Tasuki really hard without realizing it)

Tasuki - Air! Air!

Piksy - (loosens hug) Oops. (n.n")

Everyone - (-.-")

IP - (glomps onto Chichiri) (.) I can't hold it in anymore!

Chichiri - It's hard to be loved, no da. (.)

Nakago - Welcome to my world. I've got _two_ women after me.

Hotohori - You think _that's_ bad? I've got two women _**and a man**_ after me. And I'm _married_.

Nakago - Well, at least _I_ don't have a man that loves me.

Tomo - Erk. (stiffens)

Chichiri - Maybe I _don't_ have it so bad. (n.n")

Taka - I don't think it's hard to be loved! Look at me and Miaka! (n.n)

Miaka - Oh Taka!

Taka - Oh Miaka! (they start making out (XP))

Miboshi - Oh get a room! It's enough to make a guy barf!

Tasuki - Whoa! This ain't for kids! (slaps hand over Chiriko's face)

Chiriko - Ouch. (.)

IP - I think we should go to the story now. (ushers everyone away from Miaka and Taka, who continue to make out (XP))

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

((...)) used for A/N and CoA/N (CoAuthoress Notes, which would be from AS, Piksy, or Crystal)

Chapter 3 - Reunions

The three of them put their items together and disappeared into a red-and-blue light. When the light cleared away, the three of them looked around at their surroundings. It was a large, beautiful mountain area, with lots of trees and a lake.

"I guess the scroll transported us to Mt. Taikyoku. Makes sense, seeing as that's the only thing that's not any bit under Tenkou's control." Taka said.

"Wow, so this is Mt. Taikyoku…" Yui said, looking around in awe.

"We've got to find everyone. Maybe they're around here somewhere." Miaka said.

"Miaka-chan? Taka-san? Is that you guys, no da?" a voice from a few meters away asked. ((IP - Though everyone should know who it is already (n.n)))

"Chichiri-san?" Miaka asked. Then she turned around and saw him running towards them.

"I thought that was you, no da!" Chichiri said. Then he looked at Yui and said, "Oh, you must be the Seiryuu no Miko. Your name is Yui, right?"

"Hai, and you're…Chichiri?" Yui asked.

"Hai." Chichiri said. Then he took off his mask, turned to Miaka and Taka and said, "It's been a while, Miaka-chan, Taka-san. I assume you know of the present situation?" ((IP - Of course you know how his voice drops a few octaves when he takes off his mask (.), and goes back up a few octaves when he puts his mask back on (also .), so I don't have to say that over and over again, right?))

"Yeah, Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama basically summed it up for us, though they didn't give too many details." Taka said.

"Well, I just got back here myself, no da. I felt a huge surge of evil ki, and I came straight here. The Nyan-Nyan told me what happened. But if Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama came to you guys, then this must be big, no da." Chichiri said.

"Did the Nyan-Nyan tell you about Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama reincarnating 5 seishi?" Taka asked.

"Hai, no da." Chichiri said.

"Well, then you can just search for their ki and we can have them gathered in no time!" Miaka exclaimed, thinking she'd solved the predicament.

"Iie, no da. It's not that easy." Chichiri said, shaking his head. "Since they are reincarnations, they don't have the same ki. Similar, but not the same. It'd be like...how's that saying go, no da? 'Like searching for a needle in a haystack' right?"

"Hai, that's it." Yui said.

"Oh. Well, I guess we'll just have to look around." Miaka said, sighing in defeat.

"I'll go and get Tasuki-kun. You guys try and find a lead of some sort, no da." Chichiri said. Then put his mask back on, threw his kasa in the air, and in a flash of bright light, he disappeared.

"Normally I'd say that he's a bit odd, but between Tomo-san and Ashitare-san, he doesn't even come _close_." Yui said.

"Jeez, that Tomo guy is _way_ weird. I mean, what's with the make-up? Is he some sort of Chinese opera singer or something?" Miaka said.

Yui was about to start laughing, when she heard a distant "WHAT DID YOU SAY BAKA SUZAKU NO MIKO?!"

The two mikos and one reincarnated seishi stared as they saw the remaining, non-reincarnated ghost seishi (both Suzaku and Seiryuu) came floating towards them, one of them obviously very pissed.

"(O.O) **GHOSTS!!**" Yui exclaimed, practically jumping out of her skin and completely forgetting what they'd told her before about Mt. Taikyoku's connection to the heavens.

"Your eminence, Yui-sama, please relax. Though we may be ghosts, we are still your loyal seishi, through and through. So do not be scared, for what scarier sight could there be than us having to spend THE REST OF FRICKIN' ETERNITY WITH THESE GODDAMN SUZAKU SEI--" Miboshi exploded, then looked at everyone's faces and quietly finished, "…shi…" ((IP - So, finally showing your true colors, eh? (XD)))

Miaka turned to Yui and Taka, all three of them sweatdropping. "Now that _that's_ settled, we just need to wait for Chichiri-san to come back with Tasuki-kun, and then we can figure out what to do next."

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(_While Miaka, Yui, and Taka met up with the remaining Seiryuu and Suzaku seishi, Chichiri went to Mt. Reikaku to get Tasuki…_)

A chibi Chichiri appeared in Tasuki's chamber and landed with a 'thump'.

"Now I just have to find Tasuki-kun, no da." Chichiri said to himself. But then he heard muffled curses and looked down to find that he'd landed on everyone's favorite bandit. (n.n)

A chibi Chichiri got off of a very squished, and very angry red-haired chibi bandit and asked, "Tasuki-kun, daijoubu ka, na no da?"

"Ya, tho' a little warnin' woulda been nice." Tasuki said, rubbing the spot where Chichiri landed. The two returned to normal ((IP - Weird, that's last word I thought I'd use for them. (n.n") Chichiri and Tasuki - (glare))) and he continued. "Of all th' places ya coulda landed ya chose t' land on me."

"Er…gomen Tasuki-kun." Chichiri said. Then he sensed something, and though it was pretty faint, it was still enough to send a shiver down his spine. He turned toward the red-haired bandit and said, "We should go, no da."

"Hm? Why? What's th' rush?" Tasuki asked.

"Just trust me, no da. I'll explain everything once we get to Mt. Taikyoku." Chichiri said.

" 'Kay, just hold on a minute." Tasuki said. Then he exclaimed, " 'ey Kouji! C'mere!"

They heard footsteps and soon they heard a familiar monologue.

" 'Knock knock.' 'Who's there?' 'It's Kouji coming per request of Genrou.' 'It's 'Kouji coming per request of Genrou' who?' " Kouji said, and he let himself in. "What'cha need boss?"

The two seishi sweatdropped at the familiar diologue…or rather, _monologue_, but then went back to being serious.

"I need ya t' look after th' place fer a while. Seems I'm gettin' dragged inta this seishi thing again." Tasuki said, obvious annoyance in his voice. Then, in addition, he muttered, "Jeez, just when things around here were startin' t' go back t' normal."

"No problem Gen-chan! Ya can count on me, just go, yer miko's probably waitin' fer ya." Kouji said, jostling him toward Chichiri.

"Okay, okay, I'm goin'. Sheesh! An' I thought I told ya not t' call me that!" Tasuki exclaimed, taking control of his body and walking voluntarily. "Hmph. If I didn't know better, I'd say ya were _eager_ t' get ridda me."

"Why would ya say that?" Kouji said sarcastically, a grin on his face saying that he was only joking around.

Chichiri put his kesa on the ground and tapped the shakujou on it.

"Ya better do a damn good job or I'll burn ya t' a crisp, ya hear?" Tasuki said, as he jumped into the kesa.

"Aye aye, captain." Kouji said in a joking voice, and giving a mock salute.

Chichiri jumped into the kesa and right after the kesa itself disappeared as well.

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(_Back to the Suzaku/Seiryuu gang…_)

"What's taking them?!" Taka exclaimed, frustrated. He paced back and forth.

"Maybe they ran into some trouble?" Miaka said, throwing out a possibility.

"Or maybe Tasuki was just asleep. You know it would take an earthquake and thensome to even make him stir in his sleep." Hotohori said, shaking his head.

"Uhh, Taka…" Yui said, looking above where Taka was pacing.

"Yeah?" Taka asked, as he stopped pacing. Yui was about to answer when Chichiri and Tasuki landed on top of him in a heap.

"(-.-)…watch out." Yui said flatly.

Chichiri got up and asked sheepishly, "Tasuki-kun, Taka-san, daijoubu ka, na no da?"

"If all wrong is all right." Tasuki replied, his eyes all swirly from the head-on collision with Taka.

"Gomen, gomen!" Chichiri exclaimed apologetically.

"If I could interrupt you baka, don't you need to be worrying about what you'll do next?" Tomo asked, rolling his eyes.

"Who are ya callin' a baka, Seiryuu no Homo!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"MY NAME'S TOMO NOT HOMO YOU BAKAYAROU!!" Tomo exclaimed.

But Tasuki and Taka ignored him and began to sing in a mock sing-song voice, "Tomo the Homo! Tomo the Homo! Tomo the Homo!" etc.

Stifled laughs could be heard from most of the people present.

Tomo could feel his blood boiling but tried to ignore them. "Hmph."

_This is getting annoying, no da._ Chichiri thought, shaking his head. _We're getting nowhere fast. But it's not like we have any leads of any sort, no da. What to do…_

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IP - THANK THE GODS I'M FINALLY DONE WITH THIS DAMN CHAPTER!!

Chichiri - Nani? Why are you so upset, no da?

IP - Damn my big mouth! I leaked a few words of what the next disclaimer would be, and my so called "friends" wouldn't get off my case! They kept bugging me to "finish the chapter and do the disclaimer!!" UGH!!

Piksy & AS - LESS COMPLAINING MORE DISCLAIMING!!

IP - Alright, alright, jeez! You're lucky I'm even _doing_ this for you! (stomps off in a huff) Just review!

Chichiri - (n.n") What she _means_ is please review, no da!


	4. New Worlds, New Adventures, New Allies

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Konnichiwa people! n.n I don't own anything Watase-like!

Chichiri - Why are you so happy no da?

IP - Because…ROKU-SAN (Roku Kyu to you people n.n), ONE OF MY _**IDOLS**_, ACTUALLY _READ_ _**AND**_ _REVIEWED _**MY** STORY! I feel so honored! Oh, and, for Roku-san and for anyone else, I'm now putting a "_**DISCLAIMER START**_" at the beginning of my disclaimers (the story-thingie in the beginning (or end, in this case) of the chappie), and a "_**DISCLAIMER END**_" and the end of the disclaimers, just to set it apart from the chappie. Hope that helps! n.n And now…(takes out a bottle of saké)…enjoy the chappie! Heh heh.

Chichiri - Uh-oh, _that_ doesn't look good na no da. (sweatdrop)

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 4 - New Worlds, New Adventures, New Allies

As Chichiri was trying to figure out what to do, Tomo began to lose his patience and was soon throwing unbreakable illusions at the two bakas, who broke into a sprint as illusionary boulders (which felt like they were real) came flying towards them.

_Ugh! Why is it that _I_ have to do all the thinking around here, no da?!_ Chichiri thought to himself. _I wish that we had Taiitsukun's help, but _she's_ the one we've got to save! Can't there be at least _one_ kami that could help us out, na no da?!_

Then his face lit up as he got a possible idea, and he turned to Miaka. "Miaka-chan, no da? Is there any possible way for you to call for Suzaku-sama's help, no da?" he asked.

"Hm? Well, I guess I could try, but wouldn't it be better to call _both_ kami?" Miaka asked.

"Both kami?" Chichiri asked in confusion.

Then, without waiting for an answer, she grabbed Taka and pulled him away from the mess of illusions, and then she called Yui over. Then Miaka and Taka called for Suzaku, while Yui called for Seiryuu, and in a matter of seconds, the two kami appeared.

"You called?" Suzaku said with a smile.

Everyone's reaction (except for Miaka, Taka, and Yui of course) was pretty much like this: oo.

Chichiri, Tasuki, Hotohori, and Chiriko all jumped out of surprise and quickly bowed down. (Oh, and of course Chichiri took off his mask out of respect.)

"No need to be so tense around me." Suzaku said comfortingly. "You don't need to bow down, in fact, for all you've done for me, _I_ should be bowing to _you_, my shichiseishi."

As the four of them slowly stood back up, flattered from the praise from their kami, their balance was thrown off from the loud dragon-kami's voice.

"BOW LOWER!!" Seiryuu boomed, as Tomo, Miboshi, and Ashitare bowed even lower out of fear.

"I've got a feelin' that we got th' better deal." Tasuki quietly said with a smirk.

"So, what was it that you needed of us?" Suzaku asked.

"Oh, right. I think Chichiri wanted to ask you something." Miaka said.

"D-da?!" Chichiri exclaimed, out of fear, nervousness, and surprise. Then Seiryuu joined with his younger brother, and Chichiri approached the two kami, trying to stay calm. "I-I'd wanted to know…" he started, unable to calm himself. But yet, when he looked at the phoenix-kami, he felt at ease and his voice took a serious (but of course respectful) tone, as he started over. "I'd wanted to know where we should start our search for the reincarnated seishi. Since they're different people, we don't know where to begin searching. Konan and Kutou are both very large places, and it would take us a long time to search through all of both countries. So I was wondering if you had anything that could aid us in our search." he concluded.

The two kami pondered for a bit, then turned to each other and gave a silent nod. Then they turned to the seishi and miko and motioned for them to follow. The two kami led them inside the palace of Mt. Taikyoku (I don't know what it's called, if it even has a name (XP)). Then they led the way to a secret room that not even Chichiri, who spent three years in training there, knew about. They looked around in awe of the new room, with it's high ceilings, wide corridors, and overall ancient feeling. They stopped in a room filled with huge mirrors and a large chest. Hotohori immediately flew to the mirrors and started looking at himself. "Oh, it has to be against some sort of godly law for a man to be this beautiful." he said.

Everyone, kami included, sweatdropped.

"A-Anyway, we came here for two reasons. First, to give you these." Suzaku said, as his brother held out a map and an orb. Yui took the map and Miaka took the orb. "But what was the second reason for bringing us here?" Yui asked.

"To bring you aid from another world." Suzaku said. Then both kami turned to the biggest mirror in the room, shut their eyes, and soon a picture of a girl with long fiery hair, the same color as Tasuki's, and fiery amber eyes, and another girl with short deep-brown hair and sapphire-colored eyes appeared in the mirror.

The red-haired girl was staring at some sort of box, which Miaka, Yui, and Taka recognized as a TV, while the brown-haired girl was leaning against a wall in the same room, her head looking up as if she was in thought.

"Are they from our world?" Yui asked.

"No, they are from a world beyond both this world and your own." Suzaku said.

All of the people present were shocked to hear that there was a _third_ world somewhere out there. Then Chichiri asked, "So you're going to bring those two girls here, no da?"

Suzaku and Seiryuu both nodded. Then they sat down cross-legged and closed their eyes.

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A young woman, no older than 19 years, made her way into a crowded building. It was her first day of her second year of college. A few minutes following her brutal trip through the crowds, she was surprised by a girl, apparently a freshman, who came up to her and bluntly asked to be her friend. She was pleasantly startled, and, to her surprise, found herself replying "Sure I will", in a happy tone that she hadn't used since the incident that took place about 5 years ago. The girl introduced herself as Kamui Hishigatsu and she introduced herself as Bara Sakura. After only two months together, the two of them had grown inseparable. They were the best of friends, sharing all secrets…all except _that_ one. She'd introduced her new friend to FY, and showed her Chichiri. Hishigatsu said that "Chichiri was nice and all, but Tasuki was _**way**_ more appealing to her." Presently, they were both at her house, and were watching one of the many FY DVDs that she owned, when she'd thought back to the day that the two of them met. She pulled herself back to present times as she watched her new best friend glue her eyes on the TV, her shoulders slouching every time Tasuki's picture disappeared off the screen, then perking back up when another picture of him appeared. She looked at her eyes, and saw that even when she was drooling over her favorite seishi, that the fire that she saw in her eyes when they first met was still there. It was funny, how similar Hishigatsu's personality was to Tasuki's most of the time. Then, with a bit of a start, she realized how much her personality was like Chichiri's, and blushed slightly, taking care to make sure that her hot-headed friend didn't notice her pink-tainted face. Luckily, Hishigatsu was practically drooling as another picture of the red-haired bandit popped it's way on the screen. She sighed in relief as the blush began to recede and her face began to return to it's normal color. She wondered what made her think of that, and at the same time, she wondered why she hadn't noticed before, how similar she was to Chichiri, as far as personality goes. But not only that, their birthdays were only a few days apart, which also meant that they were both Gemini, and she wouldn't even be surprised if they had the same blood type, judging from how their personalities were so similar. She sighed as she looked over at her friend, who continued to drool over any and all scenes that involved Tasuki. She rolled her eyes and turned off the TV, earning death glares from her friend. "C'mon, we've gotta do our homework." she said.

"Can't it wait 'till _after_ Tasuki kicks ass?" Hishigatsu whined.

Sakura sighed, and said, "I'll bring the DVDs with me when I sleep over tomorrow. I've even got a portable DVD player, so we can watch it in your room."

"Sugoi!" Hishigatsu exclaimed happily. "Anime night!

"But that's _only_ if we do our homework _now_, understand?" Sakura asked, waving a teasing finger.

"Yes _mother_." Hishigatsu replied sarcastically, and they both broke into giggles. Though Sakura didn't show it, her heart pained at the word "mother". She knew it wasn't her friend's fault, she didn't know. When Hishigatsu had first asked her where her parents were, she lied and said that they lived on the other side of the country, for business purposes, but she hadn't said any more than that. And she had a feeling that her friend understood that she didn't want to talk about it, so the subject had been dropped. They went into her room and started their homework, but she couldn't concentrate for some reason. She realized that she'd been trying to reason in her head, why she'd done what she did those 5 years ago. She attempted to shake it off, scolding herself for dwelling on the past so much. She tried to concentrate, but to no avail. So she just gave up and let her mind wander as she kept her eyes shut. Suddenly, something caught her attention and she opened her eyes to see a concerned Hishigatsu staring at her.

"Sakura-chan, daijoubu ka?" Hishigatsu asked, making it apparent that she was worrying. Both Hishigatsu and Sakura are Japanese-American, and have been learning how to speak and understand Japanese for quite some time, even though they only got down a few words, so they have a habit of using it in everyday conversations and such.

"I'm fine." Sakura said. "Gomen, I didn't mean to make you worry."

"Don't worry about it. Anything for a friend!" Hishigatsu said with a smile.

Sakura smiled at the word "friend", but at the same time, she felt like it was an impossible dream, a dream she wasn't worthy of. She let out a whispered "Arigatou Hi-chan" and turned her attention back to her homework, actually paying attention to it this time. She flew through the homework as if it were nothing, and after a few minutes, she was fully done. Then she turned to her friend and asked, "How's it coming?"

"Good, I think I'm actually starting to get it." Hishigatsu said with a slight grin.

"Well, if you need my help, just ask, 'kay?" Sakura said.

"Arigatou." Hishigatsu said, smiling. And after 30 minutes, she'd finished all of her work, with some aid from Sakura.

Sakura and Hishigatsu both let out a tired and relieved sigh. "I can't wait until tomorrow!" Hishigatsu exclaimed happily, straightening herself from the slouching position she'd been in before. Then she looked at the nearby clock, her smile fell to a disappointed frown, and she slouched back down. "Aw man, 6 'o clock already? Guess I've gotta go now. I hate having a curfew. I'm 18 for Suzaku's sake!"

Sakura chuckled at the use of the fictional kami's name, and she figured that Hishigatsu had gotten that from when Nuriko said it in one of the manga, volume 17 most likely.

"It's your fault for not keeping up your grades." Sakura said in a joking voice.

"Not my fault Mitka-sensei gave us that pop quiz." Hishigatsu grumbled, then she turned her head and muttered some very Tasuki-like words. After she was done sulking, she tried to lighten up and asked, "Hey Sakura-chan, can I borrow one or two of your manga?"

"Hai, go ahead. I'll take them back when I go home Monday night." Sakura said.

"Arigatou gozaimasu!" Hishigatsu exclaimed happily, as she took vol. 17 and 18 off of the nearby shelf. Then she put the books in her bag, grabbed her coat, put her shoes on, and exclaimed, "See ya tomorrow, Sakura-chan!" Then she ran out the door.

Sakura went to the window and watched her friend head in the direction of the bus stop. Once she was out of sight, she began to clean up her room and the living room. After a few minutes of straightening up, she grabbed some utensils and food from the refrigerator, and started whipping together a quick meal. Once the meal finished cooking, she sat down at her small table and silently ate. She finished, cleaned up, and went to her room to pack.

"Lesse, what do I need? Of course underwear and bras, and I'll need three outfits, hmm, these'll do, pajamas of course, and I guess I should bring a short sleeve shirt and shorts, you never know, New York's got the craziest weather…" she said to herself, then continued throwing stuff in an overly-big bag. "..socks, and a sweater. There, that should be everything as far as clothes go. Then there's the DVD player, the DVDs, a few CDs, my MP3, batteries just incase, a few novels and manga, my study guides for the tests on Monday, a new toothbrush, just incase I forget to throw in my old one, toothpaste, my video camera, all though I have no clue why she wants me to bring that, and…I guess that's it!"

She closed her huge bag with minor difficulty and lugged it to the door, where she'd pick it up tomorrow on her way to Hishigatsu's house. Then she brushed her teeth with her old toothbrush, threw it in her bag without bothering to take out the new one, changed into another pair of pajamas, and jumped into bed, despite it only being 7:30.

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(_The Next Day, After School…_)

The two friends eagerly walked out of the college, and caught a bus that took them to Sakura's house. Sakura quickly unlocked the door, took off her bookbag, took what she needed from her bookbag and put it in her other bag, dragged her other bag out, locked the door, and the two girls ran for the bus that'd take them to Hishigatsu's house. They hopped on the bus and, after stopping at a nearby Deli & Grocery Store to pick up candy, Arizona Iced Tea, and Hawaiian Punch to sneak into Hishigatsu's room for "Anime Night", arrived at her house. Hishigatsu unlocked the door, and they both ran inside, not even bothering to take off their shoes.

"Oh yeah, I wanted to show you something." Hishigatsu said, leading Sakura up into her room.

"What is it Hi-chan?" Sakura asked, her coat still on and her giant bag still on her back (it's like a bookbag sort of bag).

Hishigatsu picked up volume 18 which was on her bed, and flipped to what was supposed to be the last page. It appeared that a few more pages had been added to the end. The two girls sat on her bed, as Hishigatsu began to read the words that were on the pages.

"_**As one story ends, another begins. Three worlds collaborate to destroy an evil thought to have been rid of. Now two girls chosen from the third world, who have watched the story unroll from the beginning, shall become part of the epic tale. The girls shall travel with allies both old and new, and shall rid the land of the evil that has conquered the heavens. Turn the page and watch the story unfold…**_" Hishigatsu concluded. Then she turned the page, to find nothing there. "That's weird. How come there's nothing here?"

All of a sudden, the book glowed a red-and-blue color, floated up in the air, and split into another book. Both shocked and curious, they looked at the cover to see nothing but the words Fushigi Yuugi: The Rising Threat on it. They looked at each other and gingerly opened the book. Almost immediately, the book began to glow the same red-and-blue color that it did before, and in a flash of light both girls disappeared. The new book landed on Hishigatsu's bed, open to the first page. The page simply read, "_**And now their story begins…**_"

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_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Hey there (hic) peoplesss! Itsh IP here! I hope ya likeded that chappieeeee!

Crystal - Okay, before you go thinking that there was some sort of crazy malfunction with the spell and grammar check, lemme back up a bit. You see, IP decided to throw a jacuzzi party, and she brought alcohol drinks, as you saw in the beginning disclaimer, and…you can just guess where it went from there. Poor Chichiri…she kept forcing them on him 'till the blue haired bishie was blue in the face. And the worst part is, and I don't know if this is from the extremely dangerous amount of drinks he's had or not, but he's a very moody drunk. It's pretty scary. But I guess you're wondering how I'm sober if IP forced drinks on everyone (Suzaku and Seiryuu seishi and mikos alike). Well it seems that my kind isn't affected by these baka drinks. And just incase you're wondering, which you most likely are, I'm what you'd call an "extraterrestrial life-form", aka an "alien". But I'm not like those stupid-looking big-headed green-things you see on the Sci-Fi channel. Nope, I'm a beautiful tameranian/saiyan! ((IP - Don't ask, I came up with her when I was, like, 11. Crystal - (glare) Are you implying something?) IP - (sweatdrop) Nope, nothing at all!))

Crystal - (takes out video camera) I know, I'm spending too much time with IP. But hey, _she_ was the one who wanted to videotape the "jacuzzi party". (starts videotaping)

Chichiri - (is currently in crying fit) Nobody loves me no da! I'm just going to drown myself na no da! (tries to drown himself in the 2½-foot deep jacuzzi he's currently sitting in (XD))

IP - CHIRI-(hic)-KUN!! DON'T GO!! I (hic) LUV YOU!! (drunkly jumps into jacuzzi, lands on Chichiri, hugs him uncontrollably)

Chichiri - (talking in between sobs) No you (sob) don't! You love that stupid Inu(sob)yasha no da! (starts bawling)

IP - No, I luv you Chiri-(hic)-kun!

_While this is going on, there's a drunken argument going on between AS and Soi…_ ((Crystal - Yeah, believe it or not, they're still arguing over him even when they're drunk))

AS - HE'SH MINE YA HEAR, MINE!!

Soi - NO HE'SH **MINE!!** AND I'LL (hic) FIGHT TO THE DEATH OVA HIM!

AS - BRING IT ON (hic) GRANDMA!

(both throw a drunken punch at each other, miss by a long shot, and each fall into opposite end of jacuzzi)

Nakago - (looks at the two girls for a few seconds, shrugs his shoulders, and jumps in) WHEEEE!

Everyone - (stops what they're doing and stares at the extremely drunk Nakago who just acted like a little girl)

Nakago - Yay!! (starts splashing around in the water like a little baby) ((Crystal - (rolls eyes) I bet you can't guess which character is on IP's list of least favorite characters.))

IP - Jeesh, he looksh like a little giiiiiiiiiiiiirlieeeeeeeeee! ((English Teachers Around The World - (shudder at atrocious spelling) ))

_Now we turn to Yui, who's telling a story to a small group of people…_

Yui - …and then I shaid, "Hey shtupid, I'm (hic) sick of ya givin us (hic) all these shtupid things to do! So piss off, (hic) old man!"

Miboshi - Then what happened, yer eminence?

Yui - …then I woke up. (-.-")

Miboshi, Ashitare, Suboshi, Hotohori and Amiboshi - (all burst out laughing drunkenly and uncontrollably)

_Now we're turning to someone new…_

WD (Whitedragon) - (is running around) _**WWWWWHHHHHHHHHHEEEEEEEEEE!!**_

Crystal - (-.-") If you're wondering, she's another friend of IP's, and yes, she's drunk too. ((WD's not a fan of FY, so she'll only appear from time to time. Quick WD, hide before they start throwing something harder than fruits! (XD)))

_Turning over to where Piksy is…_ ((Crystal - (-.-") Oh jeez.))

Piksy, Nuriko, Mitsukake and Tomo - (singing very loudly (and very off key) into microphones with the stereo system turned to full blast) **WE 'R FAMILIE! I GOTSALL MA SISTAS W' ME! WE 'R FAMILIE! GET UP EVERYBUDDY AND **_**SIIIIIIING**_**!!**

Crystal - (shakes head) (sarcastically) Oi, it's a musical meets the twilight zone! Nothing new there! Moving on. (-.-)

_Attention is now turned to the bar, where there's a crowd of people who came from god knows where, and are chanting_

People - GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO! etc.

Tasuki - (collapses on floor after 100 straight glasses of sake)

People - (cheering for the person who won) ((Crystal - Just try and guess who it is.))

Chiriko - (stands on the stool drunkenly, and pumps his fist in the air) WHO ROKSH, I ROKSH, WHO ROKSH, I ROKSH, OH YEAH!! ((Crystal - Can you believe he had 102 glasses of sake and didn't succumb to alcohol poisoning?)) I FRUKIN ROK!! I SHO FRUKIN ROK!! NO ONE C'N BEAT ME! EVERYONE, SING WITH ME! (starts drunkenly singing at the top of his voice) **I 'M TH' CHAMPYON, I 'M TH' CHAMPYON! NO TYME FER LOOOOOSERS, CUZ I 'M TH' CHAMPYON!!**

Crystal - (X.X) This is pure torture! (continues videotaping nonetheless)

_Turning back to IP and Chichiri…_ (Oh, and I'm borrowing most of these lines from Opa-san (Opaaru Tsuki to you folk), with her permission of course, because they were just so funny! (XD))

Chichiri - I am Shuzaku seishi Chichiri! I am the oldest, wisest, and best looking of all you losers no da! We don't need any other warriors, I AM IT!!

IP - You shouldn't get so cocky, er Tasuki'll hear ya.

Chichiri - HA! If I told you how many times I saved his sorry butt you'd cry…CRY NO DA! But does anyone thank me? Noooooo. Does anyone ask me what I want? Noooooo. It's always: "Chichiri I have a problem." "Chichiri tell me what I should do." "Chichiri put a spell on the wall so I can make-out with my boyfriend." "Help Chichiri, there's a blond maniac trying to fry me!"

IP - I guess this must b' th' depression session ov 'is drunken stupor. Neva realized you we're so resentful.

Chichiri - And then when it's all done what happens? She goes and blows all three wishes and it's "thank you for your time Chichiri now it's time to go back to your empty pointless life" na no da! (voice cracks) EMPTY!

IP - Itsh not that bad. Ya still got me.

Chichiri - (yells at random person) AND DON'T YOU FORGET IT NO DA!

Tasuki - (pulls himself back up somehow) Oi Chiri, if yer that mad then just go chant a spell or somethin'!

Chichiri - Spell? Ok Tas'ki-shan…(ki blasts nearby house) TAKE THAT N'DAA!

IP - He's so destructive when he's drunk! It's so…ADORABLE! (fangirl squeal) (huggles Chiri)

Chichiri - Daa…did I win the pony no daaa?

IP - No, ya won this! (chibi smooch on the cheek) (n.n)

Chichiri - YEAH!! WOOO!! (hic) (loudly whispers) IP, c'n you keep a secret no da?

IP - (nods slowly, not sure what to expect)

Chichiri - I saw a Hello Kitty Ballerina plushie is Tas'ki's room once n'da. (starts to laugh) He called it his Kit-Kit! (XD) (slumps on IP laughing then whispers loudly) But don't tell him I told you n'da!

IP - (sees Tasuki less than 2 ft. away) Oook I won't tell…(XD)

Tasuki - Mmm, wha, Kit-Kit's here?! Oh no, I can't let 'im see me like this!

Crystal - (-.-") You've _got_ to be kidding me.

((If you're wondering where Miaka and Tamahome are in all of this, well, they're still makin' out (XP) Only this time they got a room, from which you could hear constant moans and groans which made you think how far they were going (Crystal - (o.o") This is supposed to be rated T, baka!) and then there was the occasional "Oh Miaka…" or "Oh Tamahome…" which was then replied with a group "OH SHUT UP (no da)!"))

Chichiri - (fell asleep, is now sleep mumbling) Tasuki put your clothes back on no da…put Nakago's Barbie dolls back…daaa…

IP - (is laughing as quietly as she possibly can, but then starts to fall asleep too)

Crystal - Looks like everyone's starting to drop, so I guess my job is almost done. While I bring this mess of drunken bodies inside the nearby house that IP conveniently set up for us, please R&R!

_**DISCLAIMER END**_


	5. The Arrival

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

Crystal - Hi there, right now I'm filling in for IP, who of course doesn't own anything that has to do with Fushigi Yuugi, but she _does_ own all of her OCs. Now, what's the problem with IP, you ask? One word: hangover. (-.-)

IP - (swirly-eyes) Ohh my head…

Crystal - Serves you right, you were the one who wanted to have that stupid party in the first place.

Chichiri - Daa…my head feels like Tama's scratching post, na no da. (swirly-eyes)

Tasuki - Keh. Ya guys hav' absolutely no tolerance fer alcohol, do ya?

Everyone (except Crystal, Tasuki, Miaka, and Taka (remember, Miaka and Taka were busy, erm, _having fun_ in the last disclaimer, so they don't have hangovers)) - NO WE DON'T! SO SUE US!

Tasuki - (smirks) Ya guys should drink a little more then.

Piksy - (gags) Can you _please_ not talk about drinks?

WD - The one time I decide to visit these disclaimers…(gag) Never again! (swirly-eyes)

AS - Can I at least get some Motrin or something over here?!

Crystal - Calm down, I'm coming! I've got my hands full here, so while I take care of everyone, you enjoy chapter 5!

Everyone - CRYSTAL!!

Crystal - I'M COMING!! Sheesh!

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

((Oh, and there's a lot of place/time changes in this chapter, so just bear with me okay? Gomen in advance and arigatou!))

Chapter 5 - The Arrival

The two girls were engulfed in the red-and-blue light. Scared and confused, they closed their eyes, not sure what to expect. After at least a few minutes, they fell down onto hard ground. They tried to lift themselves up, but they had difficulty, between the heavy bags on their backs and their lack of energy. So they both finally gave up and collapsed on the ground.

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Suzaku and Seiryuu both weakly opened their eyes and tried to stand, but to no avail. They fell back down, huffing and puffing as if they'd run a 200 mile marathon. But of course Tasuki was oblivious as usual. "What's with them? First they go t' sleep, n' now their outta breath?!"

Everyone (excluding the gods and Tasuki) sweatdropped.

"Anou…Tasuki-kun, they weren't asleep, no da. They were calling those two girls from that other world." Chichiri said, a slight bit of annoyance in his voice.

"Hey, where _are_ the girls, anyway?" Taka asked. "Weren't you able to bring them here?"

"Hai, we brought them here, but only just barely." Suzaku said.

"And because of that, you'll have to search for them." Seiryuu said.

The two kami once again made an attempt to stand up, and once again they fell back down. Chichiri then awkwardly walked up to the two kami and outstretched his hand, asking, "D-Do you need help, no da?"

Seiryuu brushed him away. "Keh. I don't need help from a _mortal_." he said, putting emphasis on the word "mortal".

Suzaku shot his older brother a look of annoyance and anger as he took the outstretched hand. Chichiri helped the kami off of the floor. Once Suzaku was standing up fully, he said, "Arigato Chichiri."

Chichiri, not sure how to react, simply replied with a nod.

"So where are the girls? Are they in Konan er what?" Tasuki asked casually, still not acting as he should in the presence of a kami, let alone _two_ kami.

"The girls shouldn't be too far from here, actually. Probably on the outskirts of Mt. Taikyoku. We'd tried to bring them directly here, but we didn't have enough power. It was a miracle that we were able to bring them here at all." Suzaku said.

"Well, I guess we should go look for them." Miaka said.

"Onegai, be careful. There is probably youkai out there." Suzaku said.

"Youkai? In that case, I'd better go ahead, no da." Chichiri said.

"Mm. I'll go with ya. Ya neva know." Tasuki said. Then he added with a smirk, "I haven't used my tessen fer a while, it needs some warmin' up."

"Hai, you can come, no da." Chichiri said with a sigh. Then he turned to the two kami and asked, "You said that they should be on the outskirts of Mt. Taikyoku, right?"

"Hai." the two kami replied.

Tasuki walked next to Chichiri. Then Chichiri put his mask back on, threw his kasa in the air, and the two of them disappeared.

"We should go outside too." Taka said. Then Suzaku and Seiryuu (who'd managed to pull himself up after trying about 5 times) led them back outside.

"I believe you have everything you need." Seiryuu said.

"So we must be going now. Call on us again if you ever need our help." Suzaku said. Then the two kami returned to the items they were occupying.

"Should we go try and find those two girls?" Miaka asked.

"No, because then we might just end up getting ourselves lost." Taka said. "Why don't we stay here and wait?"

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"Man, we're not gonna last much longer like this." Hishigatsu said, huffing and puffing. "If only we had our shinai or something with us, then we would have stood a better chance."

"You're talking like we're gonna die." Sakura said. "Well, we're _not_ gonna die Hi-chan, so don't be getting any ideas."

"Chikuso! First that weird book appears, then it shines that red-and-blue light, then we end up here, and the next thing we know we're getting attacked by these weird monsters!" Hishigatsu exclaimed. Then she jumped and dodged another attack. "Not to mention we don't have a minutes peace to take off these bags and fight regularly!"

"Man, I really hope that there's some sort of help on the way." Sakura said, jumping to the side to avoid another hit. "We can't just keep dodging like this, but we have nothing to fight back with!"

They ran around, dodging attacks left and right, getting cut and bruised from the attacks that did manage to hit. The girls eventually collapsed, still conscious but unable to move from the excruciating pain. They waited for what they thought was the inevitable.

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"Y' know Ch'chiri, ya really oughta work on yer landings." Tasuki said, as he pulled himself off of the ground.

"Gomen Tasuki-kun, no da." Chichiri said. Then he heard noise from not too far away.

Tasuki heard it as well. "Shimatta! That doesn't sound good!"

"Hayaku!" Chichiri exclaimed. "You go ahead, you're faster!"

Tasuki nodded and used his seishi speed to run towards where he heard the noise. Chichiri wasn't too far behind.

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_Kuso!_ Hishigatsu exclaimed in her head. She closed her eyes and braced herself for the impact, but she didn't feel anything. Instead, she heard a familiar "Rekka Shinen!" and a screech of pain. She slowly tried to lift her head as she saw someone coming towards her. She tried to look around to find Sakura. She finally saw Sakura being picked up by another man, and tensed. She was too tired to see exactly who it was. She then felt herself being gently lifted off of the ground. Then she heard the two men talking.

"Is she okay, no da?" one asked.

"Yeah, she jus' looks a bit beat up, but nothin' fatal. How's th' other girl?" the other asked.

"About the same, no da. But we should get them back to Mt. Taikyoku before it gets any worse."

Hishigatsu relaxed as she heard that Sakura was still alive. But then she realized that she recognized these voices. She slowly attempted to open her eyes, and once they were a quarter of the way open, she was able to make out a man with the same color hair as her, and a familiar face. "Tasu…ki?" she said, right before falling unconscious.

The seishi looked at her with a confused look on his face, then ran over to Chichiri, who transported them back to Mt. Taikyoku.

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IP - Gomen nasai for the chapter being so short. I had a bit of writers block. ((grumble) Stupid writers block…) Anyway, I'm pretty much over my "hangover", as is everyone else.

Chiriko - Ugh, its not fair that you get a fake hangover and we get a _real_ hangover. (gag)

IP - Hey, no one told you to drink 100 glasses of sake.

Chiriko - (gag) It was 102. (.)

IP - Whatever. Anyway, I hope everyone enjoyed that chapter. Please R&R! (n.n)


	6. Two Girls From Another World

_**DISCLAIMER START**_  
IP - Konnichiwa minna-san! (n.n)

Crystal - You sure are peppy for someone who just got over a hangover.

IP - (n.n) Anyway, Crystal, is the tape ready?

Crystal - Yep! (grins evilly)

IP - Ulp. That doesn't look good…(-.-")

Crystal - Remember when I video taped the "jacuzzi party"? Well, I made that into a tape, and now we're all going to watch it. (evil grin) This should be good…

IP - (pops the tape in the VCR)

(tape starts playing)

(sound of Chichiri trying to drown himself)

Tasuki - (smirks) Neva thought of ya as a suicidal.

Chichiri - (blushes (but since he has his mask on, it's only a little noticeable)) Oh shut up, no da!

(now you hear Soi and AS fighting)

Soi and AS - Nothing new there.

(you hear them fall in, and then you hear Nakago jumping in like a little girl and splashing around like a baby (XD))

Everyone (except Nakago, of course) - (bursts out laughing)

Nakago - GIVE. ME. THAT. THING.

IP - (in between laughs) Quick (laugh) Chichiri (laugh) use (laugh) a freezing spell (laugh) or something!

Chichiri - (stops laughing long enough to gather his energy and restrain Nakago from destroying the tape (along with the VCR, TV, and everyone in the room))

Nakago - LET ME GO SO I CAN DESTROY THAT DAMN CONTRAPTION!!

IP - Uh, dude, it's called a tape.

Nakago - WHATEVER!!

Chichiri - (sweating from strain) A little help here, no da?

Crystal - I got'cha covered. (uses telekinesis to hold Nakago in place, as everyone sits down to continue watching the tape)

(you hear Yui telling the last bit of her story and everyone laughing)

Yui - I never told that to anyone! Damn, alcohol is a dangerous thing.

(sounds of WD giddily (if that's a word) yelling and running around)

IP, AS and Piksy - Nothing new there.

WD - (vein pop) (bonks the three girls on their heads) Baka.

(now you hear Piksy, Nuriko, Mitsukake, and Tomo singing)

Everyone (except said four) - (rolling on the floor laughing (except Nakago, who's still being held still by Crystal's telekinetic powers, so he's just laughing (XD)))

Piksy - (not surprised)

Nuriko, Mitsukake and Tomo - (blushing and hiding their heads in their arms out of shame)

Crystal - Don't feel bad. Just watch what happens with Chichiri!

Chichiri - Da?! What happens with me, no da?!

Crystal - You'll see. Heh heh.

Chichiri - (gulp)

(now you hear the crowd, Tasuki collapsing and then you hear a drunken Chiriko start to sing)

Everyone (except Chiriko) - (laughing hysterically)

Chiriko - (blushing) That defies all logic whatsoever…

IP - You were drunk! There's no logic in drunk!

Crystal - Shush! Here's the best part!

(now you hear Chichiri's whole thing one how no one appreciates him, etc. (if you want, just go back to chapter four and read it (XP)))

Chichiri - (his face is completely red despite the mask, is hiding in a corner) I can't believe I said those things, no da…

Crystal - (n.n) (happily releases her hold on Nakago)

Miaka - Blew all three wishes, huh?!

Nakago - I'll show you who plays with Barbie dolls!!

Tasuki - (blushing) No one's supposed to know about Kit-Kit!

Everyone - (O.O") You mean that was _true_?!

Tasuki - Uhh, umm, uh, whatever! GET CHICHIRI!!

(cartoonish dust cloud appears around Chichiri)

Chichiri - DAA!! (receives chibi punches, kicks, bites (Crystal - Wait, who bites? IP - Ashitare, duh. Crystal - (-.-")), etc.)

IP - (sneaks over to the dust cloud, pulls Chichiri out, runs away)

Chichiri - Arigatou, no da! (TT.TT) (tears of gratitude)

IP - You deserved it though. You're lucky you're my favorite bishie.

Chichiri - (chibi victory sign)

IP - But you know you're dead when they find out you're gone.

Chichiri - Quick, give me my kasa, no da!

IP - (puts him down, gives him his kasa confusedly (hey, that's a word! (XD)))

Chichiri - See ya! (disappears into kasa)

IP - (after a few seconds, realizes what's going on) You think you can get away, huh? Well, we'll see about that. (takes out remote with Opa-san's bishie hunting TM on it) Technically, this is Opa-san's, but I'm borrowing it. I'll give it back when I'm done. (switches it to pain mode) (n.n) (pushes the button)

Chichiri - (from at least 500 miles away) **ITAI, NO DAAAAAA!!**

IP - Hmph. Serves him right. Now, while I go get my unconscious bishie back, you enjoy chapter 6!

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 6 - Two Girls From Another World

Chichiri and Tasuki arrived back at Mt. Taikyoku in no time. They headed straight into the palace, Chichiri carrying Sakura and her bag, and Tasuki carrying Hishigatsu and her bag. They found two empty rooms next to each other. Chichiri brought Sakura into one room, and Tasuki brought Hishigatsu into the other. The two men carefully laid the two girls down on the beds.

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Tasuki laid Hishigatsu down, and put her bag on the floor near the bed. Then, with much hesitation, gingerly removed her clothes (only up to her bra and underwear, hentai! XP), to patch her up. Chichiri had told the Nyan that they shouldn't use their powers unless it was an emergency, because he suspects that they now have a limited use. Tasuki took a cloth and wiped the blood off of her. Then he applied medicine to the more serious wounds, wrapping them in cloth when he was done. Once he had her fully cleaned up, he pulled the covers over her, grabbed a chair, and sat down next to her bed.

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Chichiri was blushing furiously as he slowly removed her clothing, trying his best not to look any more than he needed to. He took care of her wounds, when something caught his eye. He took off his mask and looked more closely. A huge scar was placed across her stomach, and he could tell that it hadn't been from the youkai. His heart pained at the sight of a young girl having to carry a scar like that, but he tried to ignore it as he continued cleaning her up, convincing himself all the while that he was just jumping to conclusions. And once he'd finished, he covered her with a blanket. Then he went and opened the window a little bit, to let some air into the stuffy room. He glanced over at the girl, who was now lightly tossing and turning in her sleep. He closed the window quickly and was about to leave to get another blanket, misinterpreting her stirring in her sleep for being cold, when a voice stopped him in his tracks.

"Okaa-san…Otou-san…Sora-kun…gomen ne…I didn't…mean it…"

Chichiri turned around and looked at the girl. He then sat down on the edge of the bed, and wiped away a tear that had fell down her face. He stayed in that spot, not saying a word, for the rest of the night.

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(_The Next Day…_)

Sakura woke up extremely early, despite not being a morning person. She tried to get out of bed, but her muscles were too sore and her body was still in pain. Instead, she gently propped herself up on her pillow, but something caught her eye. She let out a small gasp, there, asleep on the edge of her bed was Chichiri. _The_ Chichiri. She knew this because his mask was still off, and his scar was plain in sight. It was like she was seeing him for the first time, even though she'd seen him on TV and in the manga plenty of times. I guess it was just different to meet someone in real life. But that was the question, was it really 'real life'? How did she know that she wasn't dreaming all of this? And as a response to this, her muscles tensed up in pain again. _That's how._ she thought glumly. Then she looked at Chichiri and thought, _But then…but then if this isn't a dream…then…then…Chichiri…he's…REAL?!_

Slowly she sat up fully and moved closer to him. Sure enough, she could hear his soft breathing. But she noticed that he seemed to be leaning forward more and more. She realized what was happening just as he began to fall off of the bed completely. Before he had a chance to kiss the floor (translation: painfully fall face first (XP)) Sakura grabbed his arm, ignoring her pain, and pulled him back on the bed, which caused him to abruptly wake up.

"I-I'm sorry…you were falling off the bed…and I didn't want you to hit your head or anything…I'm sorry…gomen nasai." she said, stumbling to find the right words.

Even though he didn't have his mask on, he still used his regular, high-pitched voice. He chuckled at the girl's ranting and said, "Don't worry about it, no da. And arigatou for pulling me back up, I guess going to sleep on the edge of the bed wasn't my best idea."

Sakura couldn't push back the blush that had crept onto her face, and why wouldn't she be blushing? Here she is, talking with the guy that she'd liked since the first time she laid eyes on him. And to top it off, she'd just _saved_ him! Well, from a broken nose at most (n.n"). Luckily, like most guys, he was pretty much oblivious when it came to love, or even infatuations, so of course he didn't take her flushed face as a blush. "Daijoubu ka, no da? You look a little red."

"O-Oh, yeah, I'm just a little warm, is all." she said, only half lying. She went to try and take off the covers, when she saw him look away, his face slightly pink. At first she didn't get it, but then she looked down and if possible, her face got even more red than before. She quickly wrapped herself up in the covers.

"Anou…can you hand me my clothes?"

"H-Hai, no da."

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Hishigatsu slowly opened her eyes, and looked around. She looked all around the room until her eyes fell on the red-haired bandit, who was looking back at her. "Oi onna, ya okay?"

"H-Hai." she responded, not expecting him to talk so suddenly. Then she asked, "Where's Sakura-chan? Is she okay?"

"If by 'Sakura-chan' you mean that girl that Ch'chiri brought in, then yeah, she's fine." Tasuki said.

"Yokatta." Hishigatsu said, putting her hand on her chest and heaving a sigh of relief. "Arigatou Tasuki-san, for bringing me here and taking care of me." then she added, "Wherever 'here' is."

"It's no problem. As fer where ya are, yer at Mt. Taikyoku. Suzaku and Seiryuu brought ya and yer friend here." Tasuki said. Then he asked, "But how did'ja know my name? Ya said it before ya blacked out too."

_Stupid big mouth of mine…_ she thought to herself. "I-It's a long story."

Tasuki sighed. He knew that the girl wasn't ready to say anything yet, so he didn't press the issue.

"Well, if ya know my name, then at least ditch the '-san', it sorta irks me. So onna, ya ready t' get outta bed?" Tasuki asked.

"I have a name you know." Hishigatsu said. "It's Kamui Hishigatsu. But my friends--uh, _friend_, that girl inside, calls me Hi-chan."

"Hi-chan huh? Th' name suits ya." Tasuki said, and lightly ruffled her hair as to imply what he meant.

Hishigatsu laughed lightly, which made Tasuki smile. _I'm glad she's okay._

"Uh, one thing Tasuki-kun."

"Yeah?"

"Why am I only in my underwear and bra?"

"…"

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Chichiri had helped Sakura get dressed, and he left to get some more cloth to bandage her wounds. Sakura was sitting on the bed, waiting for Chichiri to return, while trying to retrace her steps to figure out how and when she arrived in this world. _I guess it was when we opened up that book. What was it called again? _Fushigi Yuugi: The Rising Threat_, yeah, that's it. When Hi-chan read the last few pages of book 18, it mentioned two girls coming from a third world, to destroy an evil thought to be rid of…I know those two girls are me and Hi-chan, but what's 'the evil thought to be rid of'?_

Then she looked around. _I haven't heard from Hi-chan. I hope she's okay…_

Just then, Chichiri came in, his mask back on. Sakura saw that he was holding a roll of cloth in his hands. Without saying anything, he quickly went to her right leg and pulled the pants up, revealing a nasty gash that was now turning into a swollen bruise. Sakura winced at the sight.

"That'd explain why I'm having trouble walking." she said with a sigh.

"You should try and keep off of this leg as much as possible, no da." Chichiri said, while carefully wrapping her leg. Once he was done, he pulled the pant leg back down, and got off of the floor where he'd been kneeling. "Gomen, this is the most I can do for now, no da. I don't have all that much medical knowledge." Chichiri said.

"Oh, it's okay Chichiri-san. I'm extremely grateful for all of your help." Sakura said.

"Daa…how did you know my name, no da?" Chichiri asked.

"Oh, anou…" Sakura nervously fumbled for what to tell him. I mean, she couldn't tell him the truth. Yeah, like she'd just go and say 'Yeah, I know your name because you're a made-up person from a book and a TV show!' So what could she say? Her mind only came up with one solution--change the subject.

"Anou, how's Hi-chan? Is she alright?" Sakura asked, hoping he'd go along with it.

Luckily for her, Chichiri saw that she didn't want to talk about it, so he just went along with her. "Hi-chan was the other girl with you, right?" When Sakura nodded, he continued. "She's okay. A little bit bruised, but other than that, she'll be fine. Tasuki-kun, a friend of mine, is staying with her."

Sakura sighed with relief, but she was also a little regretful and embarrassed. She'd noticed that the "no da"s disappeared, which meant that he was probably still worried about how she knew his name. She could've just came up with a story, but she knew better than that. Hishigatsu might've came up with a story, and then if she'd came up with a different story, then the two seishi'd probably figure out that something was up. No, she'd best wait until she could talk to Hishigatsu before telling him anything. _Don't wanna make things more complicated than they already are._

"Well, you seem to know my name, but I never got yours."

Chichiri's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. "Oh, I'm sorry, how rude of me. Watashi wa Bara Sakura."

Chichiri smiled and said, "Well, it's nice to meet you, Sakura-san."

A sudden knock on the door made the two of them jump slightly and look at each other.

"Um, who is it?" Sakura asked.

"It's me, Sakura-chan!" Hishigatsu said happily from outside the room. Then without a moment's hesitation, she burst through the door and practically threw herself on Sakura.

"I was so worried!!" Hishigatsu exclaimed.

"Itai!" Sakura exclaimed, as Hishigatsu had just managed to squeeze most of the parts of her body that were still aching.

"Ack! Gomen nasai Sakura-chan!" Hishigatsu exclaimed, getting off of Sakura.

Soon a very flushed Tasuki came into the room.

"You okay Tasuki-san?" Sakura asked.

"He's fine, he just had to help me dress, is all." Hishigatsu said, as if she hadn't been bothered by it.

_Then again, that was probably something she'd been dreaming about since she'd first laid eyes on the guy._ Sakura thought, rolling her eyes.

"WHY THE HELL'RE YA SO CASUAL 'BOUT IT?!" Tasuki exclaimed, his face still red.

To which both girls started laughing, which left the two seishi in utter confusion.

"Anyway, arigatou Chichiri-san, for taking care of Sakura-chan!" Hishigatsu said happily.

"Jeez, you don't _look_ like someone who'd just gotten better from almost being beat to death by some youkai." Tasuki said, rolling his eyes.

"Can I help it if I'm happy to see my friend?!" Hishigatsu exclaimed.

"So, you're Hi-chan, no da?" Chichiri asked, jumping in before a fight started.

"Yep! My full name's Kamui Hishigatsu. Hi-chan's what Sakura-chan calls me." Hishigatsu said. "Sakura-chan, how come you're not out of bed yet?"

"She hurt her leg, no da." Chichiri said. "She has to rest for a few days, and let her leg heal naturally, no da."

Sakura smiled a bit, hearing his "no da"s come back made her happy. But her smile quickly faded as her leg pain came back.

"You okay Sakura-san?" Tasuki asked.

"Yeah, my leg's just bothering me again. Nothing to worry about, Tasuki-san." Sakura said.

"Ya don't need to call me 'Tasuki-san', Tasuki's just fine." Tasuki said.

"Alright." Sakura said.

"We should go, no da. You need your rest, or your leg won't get better. We'll come back in a little while, no da." Chichiri said.

The three of them turned to leave the room when Sakura said, "Hi-chan, can you stay for a little bit? I need to talk to you."

Hishigatsu shrugged and walked back to Sakura's bed, as the two boys left the room. Once Hishigatsu thought the boys were gone, she asked, "So, what'cha wanna talk about?"

"Well…" Sakura said. She was about to start talking when she thought of something. She looked around and saw that her giant bag had apparently been put in the corner.

"Hey Hi-chan, go in my bag, get out the DVD player, look through my CDs, pop in the one with the loudest non-Japanese song, and put it up so that it'll be loud enough to cover our talking." Sakura whispered.

"Wh--oh…" Hishigatsu said, as she realized why the request had been made. "You're a sneaky little one, aren't you?"

She then went over to the bag, and did what she was told.

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Tasuki had his ear to the door, trying to listen.

"You know, it's rude to eavesdrop, no da." Chichiri said with a sigh.

"I'm not eavesdropping, I'm just trying to listen in on their conversation!" Tasuki said.

(sweatdrop)

Just as Chichiri was about to say something, loud music started playing, which made Tasuki (and Chichiri) jump.

"WHAT TH' HELL?!" Tasuki exclaimed. "Great, now I can't hear anything over that noise!"

"Anou, Tasuki-kun, that's probably what they want, no da." Chichiri said with a sigh.

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After hearing Tasuki's exclamation, the two girls smirked. It seems that they knew Tasuki well enough after all.

"Okay, did Tasuki-kun ask you how you knew his name?" Sakura asked, loud enough so that only Hishigatsu could hear her.

"Hai." Hishigatsu answered at the same volume.

"Did you tell him anything?" Sakura asked.

"Iie, I couldn't think of anything. Why, did you say anything to Chichiri-san?" Hishigatsu asked.

"Iie. I wanted to talk with you first before I told him anything." Sakura said.

"So what will we tell them?" Hishigatsu asked.

"Why don't we just wing it?" Sakura suggested. When Hishigatsu gave her a curious look, she explained, "One of us can make it up as we go along, telling as much of the truth as possible without going over the line, and maybe the other can throw in details to back up whichever one of us is explaining. If only one of us talks, then there'll be less of a chance for us to slip up and say something that might complicate matters even more."

"Yeah, sounds like a good idea. I'm pretty sure I'd wind up slipping up, so you can do the talking." Hishigatsu said.

Then, a loud "HOW TH' HECK COULD THEY KNOW THAT I WAS GONNA EAVESDROP?!" ended their conversation. Hishigatsu turned off the music, opened the door, and said with a smirk, "Because we can read you like an open book, baka."

She invited the two startled seishi back into Sakura's room, even though Chichiri kept saying "Sakura-san needs to rest, no da!" but he quieted down after Sakura convinced him that she was fine. Once everyone was quiet, Sakura spoke.

"You two wanted to know how we knew your names, correct?" When both of them nodded, she continued. "Well, we talked it over, Hi-chan and I, and decided that it'd be okay to tell you, so here goes."

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IP - Whoo! Cliffie! I'm so evil! (D) What is Sakura's plan? Will the two boys believe her? Find out in the next chappie! (n.n)

Chichiri - Daa…

IP - If anyone's wondering, I caught my little bishie, and I currently have him tied up, kasa, kesa, and shakujou far from his reach, and his hands are tied behind his back so he can't do any spells to save himself. Wow, I sure plan ahead! (n.n)

Chichiri - ( ( ) Meanie, no da.

IP - (n.n) You're so kawaii when you're grumpy. Anyway, please R&R!


	7. Tenkou's First Move

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Konnichiwa minna-san, and to get this outta the way, I don't own anyone. Anyway, welcome to another great chappie, and in this chappie, there shall be blood, betrayal, and death!

Everyone - (O.O) Really?

IP - Pfft. No! Of course not! (XD)

Everyone - (rolls eyes)

Chichiri - Will any of you people out there convince IP to let me go, no da? Onegai?! (TT.TT)

IP - Nuh-uh Chiri-kun, I'm not letting you go no matter what!

Chichiri - Onegai, na no da?

IP - (shakes head) Iie.

Chichiri - (goes chibi) Onegai, na no da?

IP - (tries to look away) I-Iie.

Chichiri - (still chibi, gets teary-eyed) Onegai IP, na no da?

IP - (is trying to hold back fangirl instincts (which would be to glomp him to death)) I-I said no!

Chichiri - (realizes he's getting through) (lowers ki enough so that his mask falls off) (talks in that deep voice that makes you wanna melt on the spot) Onegai IP, na no da?

IP - (is now blushing, and is starting to lose control to her fangirl side) DAMMIT CHIRI I'M NOT LETTING YOU GO AND THAT'S FINAL!

Nakago - No! Don't fall victim to his powers of persuasion! He's trying to trick your obsessive, fangirl side into freeing him!

IP - YOU DON'T THINK I KNOW THAT YOU BAKAYAROU?!

Chichiri - (still with his deep, die-on-the-spot voice) (teary eyed) Onegai IP, na no da?

IP - GAH! I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE! (.) (glomps Chichiri) You fight dirty, you know that?

Chichiri - I use what I know works best, no da! (n.n)

IP - I'm still not untying you.

Chichiri - (gives her a quick kiss on the forehead)

(Piksy & AS -WHAT?!)

IP - (unties Chichiri, then dies happy (translation: faints (XD)))

Chichiri - ……Mitsukake?

Mitsukake - On it. (picks up IP, brings her inside the house (the one where Crystal brought everyone after the "jacuzzi party"))

Chichiri - I might as well go with them. I've got nothing better to do. Ja ne, no da! (walks inside the house)

Everyone else - ……………(-.-")

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 7 - Tenkou's First Move

"You two wanted to know how we knew your names, correct?" When both of them nodded, Sakura continued. "Well, we talked it over, Hi-chan and I, and decided that it'd be okay to tell you, so here goes."

She glanced over at Hi-chan nervously, praying that what she came up with made enough sense. Maybe she should have waited until tomorrow before she told them, that way she could've came up with something. But she shook the thought off. _No backing out now._

"First, a question for you both." Sakura said. This surprised the seishi and Hishigatsu alike, but the two seishi nodded, allowing her to continue. "Do you know the ShiJinTenChiSho?"

"Hai."

"And do you know what it's used for, what it really is?"

To this, only Chichiri responded. "Hai, it's the medium between this world and the miko's world."

"And you know how the story of the miko's travels were recorded in that book, so to speak, correct?"

"Hai, but I don't see what you're getting at, na no da. What does this have to do with our names?" Chichiri asked.

"It has plenty to do with your names, but at least I won't have to explain what the book is, so I'll get more to the point." Sakura said.

"Ya, but why're you the one doin' all th' talking? What about Hi-chan ova there? Fer someone who was so loud before, ya sure are quiet now." Tasuki said curiously.

_Uh-oh, that's not good._ Sakura thought. But to her surprise, she heard a calm response from Hishigatsu, as if she'd had this planned all along.

"Well, I may be the loud one, but she's the one who does most of the thinking. I _still_ have hardly any clue as to what's going on. Not to mention the fact that I completely suck at explaining stuff." Hishigatsu said, casually shrugging her shoulders.

Sakura inwardly released the breath she'd been holding. _Well, I guess I shouldn't have expected less from Tasuki-kun's number 1 fan, it only figures that she'd realize he'd ask something like that._ After a few more seconds, she continued with her story. "Anyway, in our world, instead of the ShiJinTenChiSho, there's a series of books titled Fushigi Yuugi: The Mysterious Play, in which your tales are told about."

"Not th' name I woulda chosen." Tasuki muttered, rolling his eyes.

Sakura chose to ignore that comment and continued. "This series of books was published, and Hi-chan and I read the books, which is how we knew your names. We also know everything that happened, from the time you met your miko, Yuuki Miaka-san, to the moment you defeated Nakago, and even after that, when you all reunited to fight off and finally defeat Tenkou."

"Or so we thought." Chichiri added bitterly.

"Nani?"

"Seems th' bastard managed t' slip away and go inta hidin', makin' us _think_ we destroyed 'im." Tasuki said.

"Matte, back up a second here. You said that you _didn't_ defeat Tenkou, but rather he went into hiding?" Sakura asked.

"Hai."

The two girls looked at each other, the same thing on both their minds, or rather, the same line. _…to destroy an evil thought to have been rid of…_

"You've…met with Suzaku-seikun and Seiryuu-seikun, right?" Hishigatsu asked, surprising Sakura along with the two seishi.

"Hai. Doushite?" Chichiri asked.

"Well, did they say anything about Tenkou "conquering the heavens" or something like that?" Hishigatsu asked.

"How--" Chichiri began, but was cut short by Hishigatsu.

"Before you ask any more questions, just answer mine straight out."

"Hai, Tenkou took over Taiitsukun, the emperor of the heavens, along with the palace of the heavens as well." Chichiri answered.

"Well, that solves another part of that puzzle, which means that it's definitely talking about this situation." Hishigatsu said. Then, seeing the two seishi's confused looks, she turned to Sakura and asked, "Hey Sakura-chan, you wouldn't happen to remember what it said at the end of the book, would you?"

"Hai, I think so. "As one story ends, another begins. Three worlds collaborate to destroy an evil thought to have been rid of. Now two girls chosen from the third world, who have watched the story unroll from the beginning, shall become part of the epic tale. The girls shall travel with allies both old and new, and shall rid the land of the evil that has conquered the heavens. Turn the page and watch the story unfold…" I think that's it. Well, we turned the page, and another book appeared, and we got sucked into it and landed here." Sakura said.

"Makes sense." Tasuki said. "As weird as that seems."

"And I'm assuming the 'allies both old and new' part is referring to us, Miaka-chan, Taka-san, Yui-san, and the reincarnations of Nuriko-kun, Mitsukake-kun, Nakago-san, Soi-san, and Suboshi-san." Chichiri said.

"Reincarnations?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah, th' kami decided it'd be easier t' fight off Tenkou if we had 8 live seishi than 11 dead seishi and only 3 live seishi between th' two of 'em." Tasuki said. Then he muttered, "Wonder how long it took 'em t' figure that out." Which promptly earned him a whack to the head via Chichiri's shakujou and an annoyed Chichiri.

" 'ey, I was just kidding!" Tasuki exclaimed, rubbing the lump now forming on his head.

"Even I know that that's not a very nice joke, Tasuki." Hishigatsu said.

"Anyway, now you know how we knew your names." Sakura said. _I'm surprised, that worked out pretty well._

Just as Chichiri was about to say something, a Nyan-Nyan burst into the room. "Chichiri-sama, Tasuki-sama, hayaku! Youkai are attacking!"

"Figures, th' bastard couldn't stay in hidin' fer long. 'bout time he made 'is move." Tasuki said with a smirk, taking out his tessen. He followed the Nyan-Nyan outside.

"You girls stay here, no da!" Chichiri exclaimed, following Tasuki.

"Demo--" Sakura started, but Chichiri already left.

"Kuso, if only we had swords, then we could help them out!" Hishigatsu exclaimed.

"Well, I don't care what Chichiri-san says, I'm going. There has to be _something_ I can do!" Sakura said, running towards the door despite the pain in her leg. Then she stopped, turned towards Hishigatsu, and asked, "Coming?"

"You need to ask?" Hishigatsu said with a smirk. Then the two of them ran out the door.

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(_A Few Minutes Later…_)

"REKKA SHINEN!" Tasuki exclaimed, as his tessen burnt away yet another of the seemingly endless youkai. "Dammit! Miaka, Taka, 'nd th' others go 'nd disappear, and we're left t' fight off these damn youkai!"

"Weren't you the one who was all eager to battle these youkai just a few minutes ago, no da?" Chichiri said sarcastically, blasting away another few youkai with a ki blast.

Tasuki didn't respond to this, instead he let out a small "Keh" and then a loud "REKKA SHINEN!"

But as many youkai as they were finishing off, there were double the amount continuing to close in on them.

"Dammit, this isn't good." Tasuki muttered, continuing to burn off the incoming youkai.

"Yeah, but there's nothing else we can do." Chichiri said, blasting away another few youkai.

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Sakura and Hishigatsu ran around the palace of Mt. Taikyoku, trying to find the way out.

"Kuso! Does this place have to be so frickin' big?!" Hishigatsu exclaimed.

"Calm down Hi-chan, we can't be that far from the exit." Sakura said.

Just as they turned the corner, they spotted two Nyan-Nyan floating away.

"Nyan-Nyan!" Sakura exclaimed, and the two aqua-haired girls stopped and floated towards Sakura and Hishigatsu.

"Hai?"

"Can you lead us outside onegai?" Sakura asked.

"Chichiri-sama said--" one of the Nyan-Nyan started, but Sakura interrupted her.

"Onegai Nyan-Nyan!" Sakura pleaded.

After a bit of hesitation, the two Nyan-Nyan nodded and lead the two girls towards the exit.

Once they got to the exit, Sakura exclaimed, "Matte!"

The two Nyan-Nyan stopped and turned to face Sakura. "Hai?"

"Is it possible for you to…make things appear or something like that?" Sakura asked.

"Sakura-chan?" Hishigatsu asked, looking at Sakura.

"Hai, but Chichiri-sama told us not to use our powers--" Nyan-Nyan said, but once again Sakura interrupted her.

"Unless it's an emergency, right? Well, this _is_ an emergency! Onegai Nyan-Nyan, they need help!" Sakura begged.

"Hai." the two Nyan-Nyan said with a sigh. "What is it you need?"

"Something to fight with. Swords preferably." Sakura said.

"Hai." the two Nyan-Nyan said. Then they brought their hands together, closed their eyes, muttered some seemingly incomprehensible words, and two swords appeared.

Sakura took one sword and Hishigatsu took the other. Both were light and easy to use, but sturdy enough that they'd last a good while. "Domo arigatou gozaimasu."

The two girls unsheathed the swords, tying the sheaths around their waists, and ran outside.

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"Ugh!" Chichiri exclaimed in pain, grabbing the spot where he'd been slashed. He looked down to see blood gushing out of the wound, and he cringed in pain.

Tasuki was currently pinned down to the ground a few yards away from Chichiri, just barely being able to fight off the youkai before they ripped his head off. He didn't even have a chance to get off of the ground, let alone back up Chichiri.

The two girls ran outside and ran straight up to where the two seishi are. They slashed through all of the youkai surrounding the two seishi with surprising ease.

"H-How?!" Tasuki exclaimed, as Hishigatsu made it to him and helped him onto his feet.

"Well, lets say I've always had a knack for swordplay." Hishigatsu said. Then she got back into her fighting stance as she said, "But that's not important now. Let's just focus on finishing off these baka youkai. With me?"

"As much as I hate acceptin' help from a girl, I'm ready t' go." Tasuki said.

"Heh. I'll just ignore that little comment for now, since I can't waste energy arguing with you." Hishigatsu said, rolling her eyes. Then she charged towards the youkai, slicing and ducking, her moves becoming more and more smooth with each youkai exterminated.

Tasuki charged towards the youkai as well, letting loose a large "REKKA SHINEN!" to burn away the youkai within range. Then he used his tessen to hit the youkai charging at him, completely forgetting his wounds as he concentrated on the battle.

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As Hishigatsu headed towards Tasuki, Sakura made her way to Chichiri, slicing any youkai that came within eyesight. Once she finally spotted Chichiri, she sped up and made it just in time to slice a youkai that'd snuck up behind him. "Phew! That was close."

"I thought I told you to stay inside! It's too dangerous!" Chichiri exclaimed. To prove his point, he then shot a ki blast at a youkai that snuck up behind Sakura.

"Okay, so now we're even." Sakura said, half joking.

"Sakura-san, this is serious! You two could die!" Chichiri exclaimed.

"Yeah, and so could you!" Sakura exclaimed back, slicing another youkai. "And then where would we be?!"

The two of them fought off youkai in silence for a while before Sakura spoke again. "Gomen nasai Chichiri-san. I didn't mean to yell like that. It's just…you're hurt, and…and I…I needed to help you somehow. It's not like this is my first time using a sword you know. Well, technically this is my first time using a _real_ sword but, ah, you get the point. Anyway, I'm not about to sit back and let you get killed just because you won't accept help from a girl, much less from a girl from another world."

"That's not what I…" Chichiri started, but then stopped, realizing that actually was what he was unconsciously doing. "…Gomen. I just felt like I had to--"

"Protect me because I'm a girl from another world, like the miko?" Sakura said sarcastically. "Just because I'm from another world doesn't mean that I need to be protected."

"Gomen." Chichiri said, and they continued to fight off the youkai in silence.

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(_One Hour Later…_)

The two girls and the two seishi laid collapsed on the floor, a pile of dead youkai surrounding them.

"Well, that's all of them." Hishigatsu said, panting hard and pulling herself off of the ground, using her sword as a walking stick to balance herself. She sheathed the sword once she had her balance back.

"Thank god. I don't think I could've handled any more." Sakura said, panting hard as well. Hishigatsu walked over to Sakura and stuck out her hand. Sakura took it, and Hishigatsu helped her onto her feet. "Arigatou Hi-chan."

"No problem." Hishigatsu said. Then she turned over to the boys. "Tasuki, Chichiri-san, daijoubu ka?"

"Hai, barely." Tasuki said, as Hishigatsu walked over to him and helped him stand up.

Sakura walked over to Chichiri and slowly helped him onto his feet.

"Arigatou." Chichiri replied.

"Anou…"

"Hai?"

"Anou…gomen about before. I shouldn't have been so cold to you. You were only trying to protect me, I shouldn't have overreacted like that." Sakura said, looking down as her face turned slightly pink. "I just…I don't like to feel so…helpless. When there's something I can do, I feel like I have to do it, no matter what."

(n.n) "Don't worry about it, no da. Not everyone likes to be protected, I guess, no da. That's understandable." Chichiri said. "I guess I've just got to get used to it, ne? But where did you learn to use a sword?"

"Well, you see, back in my world, I took something called kendo for a few months. Kendo is basically a safer art of sword fighting, where we normally use either wooden swords or shinai, which are sort of like swords, but less dangerous. I also took archery lessons for about a month, which really helped with my accuracy." Sakura said.

"Wow, so I guess that explains it. But what about Hi-chan? Did she take this "kendo" as well, no da?" Chichiri asked.

"Iie. But she was basically born with a kendo stick in hand, if you know what I mean." Sakura said with a chuckle. "Natural-born talent."

"Wow, no da. That's pretty rare, to have a natural-born talent like that." Chichiri said. _Reminds me of his majesty, Hotohori-sama._

"And it's even more rare in my world." Sakura said. "But enough of that. Let's go inside and get cleaned up. You've lost a lot of blood."

"Iie, I'm f--" Chichiri started, but then he toppled over, his eyes swirly. "Daa…okay, maybe I _did_ lose a bit of blood, no da."

Sakura giggled and said, "C'mon, let's go." She helped lift him off of the ground. "Here, lean on me for support."

"Arigatou Sakura-san." Chichiri said, as the two of them walked back inside the palace of Mt. Taikyoku.

"Anytime Chichiri-san."

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Crystal - IP is currently in "la-la land" over Chichiri kissing her on the forehead, even if it _was_ just so she'd untie him.

IP - (IP is not available at the moment, as she is currently in "la-la land". Please leave a message after the beep. BEEEEEEEP.)

Crystal - (sweatdrop) I've also been charged with keeping Piksy & AS in check, as they're about to rip IP to shreds.

Piksy & AS - WHY THE HELL DID YOU MAKE CHICHIRI KISS YOU WHEN TASUKI (NAKAGO) DIDN'T KISS ME?!

Chichiri - Anou…onegai, don't be mad, no da. I'm sure she'll give you your moment, sooner or later. Besides, (lowers voice to a whisper) it wasn't real anyway.

IP - () What was that blue-boy?!

Chichiri - Erk, blue-boy, no da? Uh-oh, she only calls me that when she's _really_ pissed, na no da. Ja ne, no da! (goes chibi, runs off)

IP - GET BACK HERE BLUE-BOY! (goes chibi, runs after him)

Crystal - (sweatdrop) See what I have to deal with? Even if you didn't like the chappie, just review if you pity me. (TT.TT)

IP - I HEARD THAT CRYSTAL!!

Crystal - Eep! R&R, my life depends on it at this point! (XP)


	8. The Journey Begins

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Hey people, finally it's the moment you've been waiting for! After 7 chapters of babbling, this show's finally gonna hit the road! They're gonna set off on their perilous journey (unfortunately, they'll set off at the end of the chappie (XP) but anyway…), and I've even decided that I'm gonna kill off one or two of the characters! (n.n)

Chichiri, Tasuki, Sakura, and Hishigatsu - (gulp) Who (no da)?

IP - (laughs) Don't worry, it's not gonna be you guys! Why would I kill off my favorites? (inconspicuously coughs)

Said four - (sigh in relief (they didn't hear the coughs (XD)))

Rest of the characters in the story - What about us?!

IP - Heh heh, you'll have to wait and see, ne?

Said characters - (gulp) (sweatdrop)

IP - Anyway, since we're _finally_ getting serious, there isn't gonna be a disclaimer this time. I'll just say that the only things I own are my OCs. Now, without further ado...here's chapter 8! (n.n)

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 8 - The Journey Begins

For a few days, Sakura rested, only getting up to eat, go to the bathroom, bathe, and cook dinner. Chichiri wasn't too happy about Sakura doing something as "strenuous" (as he called it) as cooking--that is, until he tasted the Nyan-Nyan's cooking compared to hers (XD). After a week of resting, Sakura's leg showed much improvement.

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(_The Next Day…_)

Sakura opened her eyes and swung her legs out of bed. Surprised, she pulled up her right pant leg, and sure enough, her leg was only mildly bruised. _It doesn't even hurt!_

She got out of bed and walked around. _Good as new! Problem is, Chichiri'll probably want me to stay in bed for another day, just in case. Ugh, I like him and all, but he's_ _**way**_ _too overprotective._

She looked around and saw the open window. She walked up to it and looked down. _Hmm, it's a little under two meters high. I should be able to jump without getting hurt._

Then she got dressed, straightened her hair, tied it up, put her shoes on, and walked up to the window. She opened it up all the way, and swung her legs out the window so she was now sitting on the windowsill. With a gulp, she put her left leg on the wall of the outside of the palace and kicked off, like she'd normally done when she was younger, 14 or 15 at most. She smiled as she skillfully landed on the ground without a sound. She walked around, enjoying the scenery for a while. After a few minutes, she ran into a Nyan-Nyan. Her face brightened up as she thought of an idea. "Hey Nyan-Nyan…"

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Chichiri walked to Sakura's room to wake her up. He opened the door and his heart jumped into his throat when he saw the empty room and open window. He ran to the dining room, burst in and exclaimed, "Sakura-san's missing, no da!"

Tasuki was about to jump up, but Hishigatsu (who was sitting next to him) put her hand on his shoulder implying that he should calm down and stay seated, which he did. Then she calmly asked, "Was her window open?"

"Hai, no da."

"Then stop worrying."

Chichiri's face scrunched up in confusion. "Am I missing something, no da?"

"Yeah, the fact that she went outside by jumping out of her window, duh." Hishigatsu said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, while putting down her chopsticks.

"How?! Th' window's 'bout two meters up from th' ground! How th' heck could a _girl_ jump that?" Tasuki asked.

"What, because we're girls, you think we can't jump from those heights?" Hishigatsu asked, narrowing her eyes slightly. "Well, for your information, Sakura-chan jumps from those heights, even _higher_ sometimes."

"But why would she go out the window, no da?"

"Maybe because of a _certain monk_ who kept her chained to this place for a _week straight_! She was well enough to walk at least two days ago, but I bet that you'd have even kept her in bed _today_!" Hishigatsu snapped. "If I was her, I'd've gone **crazy** by now!!"

"…I guess you're right, no da. I could have at least let her go outside for a bit." Chichiri said. "I'll go look for her, no da."

He turned to walk out.

"Oh, one more thing Chichiri."

He turned back around. "Yeah?"

"If you wanna find her, look in the quietest place you can think of."

Chichiri nodded, then turned back around and walked out of the room. Once Chichiri was gone, Tasuki quietly spoke. "Y' know, you shouldn't've snapped like that. He's only tryin' t' help her."

Hishigatsu sighed. "Yeah, I know. It's just…I dunno, I guess that seeing her all cooped up like that made me feel weird. I mean, I'm used to her staying in her room by herself, but this was different. Those times it was voluntary, and she was enjoying it, but now, it almost seemed like she was in _jail_ or something." she sighed again. "But I guess that he's just one of those extremely overprotective people."

"Heh, he's always been like that, in a way. It's how he shows that he cares, I guess." Tasuki said. "And from th' way he was practically chainin' her t' th' bed, I'd say he _really_ cares."

At this the two broke into laughter.

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"Hey Nyan-Nyan…" Sakura called out to the aqua-haired girl.

She quickly floated over to Sakura. "Hai? What is it you need, Sakura-sama?"

"Do you think it's possible for you to make a soccer ball?"

"Soccer…ball?" Nyan-Nyan asked, cutely tilting her head to the side in confusion. "What is this 'soccer ball'?"

"Hmm, I guess I can try and explain it, but it might be hard…" Sakura said, but then she felt a small hand rest on her head. "Nyan-Nyan?"

Nyan-Nyan didn't reply, but a few seconds later, she took her hand off of Sakura's head, and smiled. "Hai, I make this 'soccer ball' for you."

"Arigatou Nyan-Nyan!" Sakura exclaimed, giving the Nyan-Nyan a big hug. The Nyan-Nyan laughed, and gently pried herself off of Sakura. Then the little girl closed her eyes and muttered incomprehensible words, and soon a soccer ball appeared in mid-air. Sakura caught it.

"Arigatou!" she exclaimed, before running off.

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(_A Few Minutes Later…_)

"Hmm, this looks like a good spot. It's nice and quiet, perfect for letting myself unwind a bit."

Sakura stood in the quiet area, the only noise being the sound of the water ripples in the nearby pond. She slowly began to bounce the ball back and forth on her knees, and once she felt that she'd warmed up enough, she went on to more complicated moves, letting her mind wander as she effortlessly bounced the ball around, on her foot, to her knee, on her head, kicking it back and forth over her head, without it once touching the ground. She'd always do this whenever she was thinking of something. Surprisingly, that was the time when she did it _best_. ((IP - If anyone reads Detective Conan (aka Case Closed) then you'll recognize this from when Jimmy/Conan does it, and I'll say that I don't own that idea either, only cuz I have to say it XP))

_I should have told Chichiri that I was going out...but then he probably would have told me to go back to bed…man, I really hope he isn't mad...the last thing I wanna do is make him angry with me…_

She continued to bounce the ball around (without it hitting the ground once, mind you) while losing herself in her thoughts.

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Chichiri ran outside, and looked around. No sight of Sakura yet. "Somewhere quiet...the pond!" With that thought, he made a beeline for the pond.

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(_A Few Minutes ((coughcoughsecondscough)) Later_)

Chichiri made his way through the bushes and found Sakura. She was holding some sort of ball in her hand. He quietly watched, his curiosity getting the best of him, as she slowly began to bounce the ball back and forth. Soon she quickened the ball's pace as she began to go deeper into thought. Her head was looking up into the sky, she wasn't even paying attention to where the ball was going, yet it managed not to touch the ground. _I wonder why she's doing that, no da. Or more like_ _**how**_ _she's doing that._

He continued to watch her in silence.

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Sakura slowly came back into reality, with the feeling that she was being watched. She scanned the area and realized that whoever it was, he or she was hiding in the bushes. She quickly bounced the ball high up in the air on her knee, and in one fast motion, jumped in the air, spun around (while in the air), and kicked the ball directly towards where the person was, while perfectly landing on the ground. But she was startled when she heard a familiar "DAA?!"

She saw the ball heading straight for the (extremely startled) blue-haired monk and gasped. "Ack! Chichiri-san!"

Then, without thinking, she threw her arms out in front of her, palms opened wide, and closed her eyes.

The ball, which was headed for Chichiri's head at probably 200 mph (exaggeration XP), stopped. Just plain stopped. In midair. And it remained floating in midair. About one or two millimeters from the tip of a sweatdropping chibi monk's nose.

"Daa…" He fell to the floor, twitching. "So fast, so scary, so fast, so scary…"

Sakura just stood dumbfounded for a few seconds, not sure what to do. Should she: a) Start laughing hysterically, b) Rush over and ask if he's okay, or c) Go glomp da traumatized monk! It was a hard choice, but she went with B and A. (n.n) She walked over towards Chichiri, laughing as quietly as she could. "You okay Chichiri-san?"

"Daa…I think, no da." Chichiri said.

She smiled, then she looked to the side to see that her ball was still floating in midair. Curious, she closed her eyes, and concentrated. And sure enough, the ball floated into her hands. She opened her eyes and relaxed her mind, allowing the ball to fully drop into her hands. Surprised, she looked back and forth, between where the ball just was and where is was presently. "Did I just...ah, nevermind. I'll figure it out later." she said to herself. Then she turned her attention back to Chichiri, who was still on the floor, and just fully getting over the shock. She walked over to him, stuck out her hand, he took it, and she helped him off of the ground. "Gomen nasai Chichiri-san, but you deserved it. It's what you get for spying on me like that." She grinned. She knew that wasn't why he was there, but she wanted to see what his reaction would be.

"I wasn't spying, no da!! Honest!" Chichiri exclaimed frantically.

"Riiiiight. You were just watching me without me knowing you were there. In _my_ world, that's called spying." Sakura said sarcastically, not being able to keep a smile from creeping onto her face.

"Actually, I came to look for you, and when I found you, you were deep in thought so I didn't want to disturb you...all-in-all, I guess I was trying to prevent what just happened, no da!" Chichiri said, and they both laughed. Then he asked, "So, what were you doing, no da? And what kind of ball is that? I've never seen one like it, na no da."

"Well, this is called a soccer ball, and as you could probably figure out, it's used for a game called soccer. As for what I'm doing…" Sakura began, as she started bouncing the ball again, "…all I'm doing is bouncing the ball around, nothing more. But I find that it helps me think. It's a weird way to help me think though, ne?"

"Well, everyone's different, no da. For you, it may be bouncing that ball around, for me it's fishing and meditating…"

"…and for Tasuki and Hi-chan, it's pretty much zilch, zip, niet, nada…nothing!" (n.n) she threw in the translation at the end when she saw his confused look. Once she threw in the last word, she heard a slight chuckle.

"That may be right, no da, but Tasuki-kun has his moments."

"Same with Hi-chan."

They smiled, then Chichiri began talking again. "You said something before about a game called sock-er or something…"

Sakura held back a laugh at Chichiri's pronunciation. "Yeah, soccer's a pretty simple and fun game. All you need is two teams, a big field with two goals, and of course a soccer ball. The object of the game is to take the ball from your side of the field to the opponent's side of the field, past all of the people on that side who are defending the goal, and you have to kick the ball into the goal. There are two different ways of winning, if you're playing a timed game, then the team who has the most goals in the allotted time wins, and if you're playing a set-score game, then whichever team reaches the set score first wins." Sakura said.

"Hmm, I think I get it, no da." Chichiri said.

"Oh, and you can't use your hands."

"Daa?!" Chichiri exclaimed. "That sounds hard, no da!"

"It's not as hard as it sounds."

"But it still sounds very hard, na no da." Chichiri said. Then he watched Sakura and realized that the whole time they were talking, she'd been bouncing that ball, and she hadn't looked at it once. Finally, his curiosity getting the best of him, he asked, "How do you do that, no da?"

"Do what?"

"Bounce that ball around while talking, no da. How do you manage to do that without paying attention to it?"

"Well, there're two reasons why I can do that. One, when I'm doing this and talking or thinking or even just plain not paying attention to this at all, I seem to get…better at it. It's weird. And two, I've had lots…" she started, then she hit the ball up in the air with her knee, and did a full bicycle kick# and landed.

#((IP - Sorry if this makes Sakura seem a little Mary-Sue-ish, but she's been playing soccer for 15 years (since she was 4) so it _is_ possible to get that good in that amount of time. (n.n) Gomen for the interruption))

The ball went flying behind her, ricocheted off of a tree behind her, and made a beeline for her head. Just as Chichiri was about to exclaim for her to watch out, she calmly put her hands behind her head and caught the ball, 1 or 2 centimeters from her head, without so much as a glance behind her, and she finished her sentence. "…and lots of practice."

Chichiri stood, staring at her in shock. He shook it off as Sakura asked, "Why don't you try bouncing it?"

"Hmm? Okay, no da." Chichiri took the ball. He started off how he saw Sakura start off, which was by throwing the ball up over her knee. He threw it up, it bounced on his knee…then it came back down on his head.

"Itai, no da!" chibi Chichiri exclaimed, rubbing his chibi head. Sakura started laughing, and chibi Chichiri chibily pouted. (So much chibi in two sentences! .)

She looked over at the cute pouting chibi monk and couldn't help but let out a little fangirl squeal. "You look so kawaii, Chichiri-san! I've never seen anything so kawaii in my life!!"

Chichiri smiled then disappeared. Sakura looked around in confusion until she felt something--or rather, someone--plop down on her head. Next thing she knew, she saw an upside-down (he's on top of her head, and he's leaning over her head so they're face-to-face, making him upside-down) chibi Chichiri's face right in front of her own. A face that, I might add, had the cutest, most innocent expression that mankind has even _yet_ to see! (.)

"Da?" he said in his adorable voice, and the two broke into laughter once more. Once they were done, Chichiri hopped off of Sakura's head and returned back to his normal size. "In all seriousness, we really should head back, no da."

"Okay. But man, I haven't laughed that much in a while!" Sakura exclaimed happily, still in a fit of tiny giggles.

"Me too, no da." Chichiri said.

"Oh, and one more thing, Chichiri-san." Sakura said.

"Hai?"

Sakura looked down at the ground and sighed. "Gomen nasai for worrying you."

Chichiri smiled. "It's okay Sakura-san, no da. I should have let you at least go outside a bit, no da. Gomen, I never realized that I was making you upset."

"So…I forgive you and you forgive me?"

"Hai."

"Good! Then we'd better head back, lest we endure the wrath of the two bored red-heads." Sakura joked.

The two of them then walked back to the palace of Mt. Taikyoku, smiling and enjoying each other's silent company the whole way there.

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(_A Few Minutes Later…_)

The two walked into the palace to find a surprisingly calm Hishigatsu and a mildly worried Tasuki. Hishigatsu eyed the soccer ball in Sakura's hands and smiled, her expression clearly saying, "I knew it." (n.n)

"Well, don't you two seem happy today!" Hishigatsu said teasingly.

"Yeah, we're happy, what of it?" Sakura said. Then with a smirk, she said, "Anyway, hope you two, ahem, _behaved_ while we were gone."

Tasuki and Hishigatsu's faces turned crimson. "NANI?!" they both exclaimed, before each individually yelling at her.

"I'M GONNA KILL YOU SAKURA-CHAN!!"

"WHAT TH' HELL D'YA THINK I'D WANNA DO WITH THAT BAKA ONNA?!"

At this, Hishigatsu turned her joking sort of rage towards Tasuki.

"Baka onna, am I? Oh, and what is it that you wouldn't want to do with me, hm?"

"Y-You know damn well what I was talkin' about!" Tasuki stuttered.

"Ooh, now I'm really mad!" Hishigatsu said with a laugh. Then she went to punch him, when all of a sudden, there was a bright red light and a dark orange blast came from her fist and sent Tasuki flying.

"Oh my god, what the hell was that?!" Hishigatsu exclaimed, looking down at her hand that was still outlined in a dark-orange-colored glow. Then, with a start, she realized her hand was now covered in a red glove. Or rather, she was startled, but she paid no attention to it. That is, until a) she realized that she was no longer on the ground and b) she noticed the stares that Chichiri, Sakura, and Tasuki (who recovered from the surprise hit and was standing back with Chichiri and Sakura) were giving her. "What are you guys looking at?" she asked.

"Uh, I'd have to be between the changed appearance and the nonexistent legs." Sakura said sarcastically, though she was still gaping.

"Wha--?!" she started, but then she looked down to find that in place of legs, there was a ghost tail ((IP - two words: Danny Phantom. three words: me no own (XP))). She gasped, partially out of shock and partially out of amazement. "Cool!"

Sakura, Chichiri, and Tasuki all facevaulted.

Anyway, here's what she now looked like. Her hair was the same length, only now it was pure white, and her eyes glowed an eerie dark orange. She was in a light blue one-piece outfit (like Danny's outfit), and her collar, beltline, and gloves were a deep red. (Her boots are deep red too, but her legs are currently a ghost tail, so she doesn't know yet) ((IP - Sorry if the outfit colors seem weird, but there IS a reason for the colors, which you'll find out about in a few chapters if you didn't already figure it out (n.n)))

"What th' hell happened t' ya?!" Tasuki exclaimed. He ran to her, and, seeing as she probably wouldn't have another chance like this in a while, she concentrated. A few seconds later, her figure became translucent. The bandit ran right through her and landed on the floor. "NANI?! WHAT TH' HELL WAS THAT?!"

Chichiri stood there, shocked at what was happening. "What…how…I can see right through you, no da!"

He walked up to where he saw her translucent figure and, sure enough, he could see right through her. "What happened?"

"Not fair, you have ghost powers!" Sakura whined. Then she walked over and punched her playfully, and of course her fist went through Hishigatsu's still-intangible body. She smiled and shivered slightly. "Just like I thought, you can feel where a ghost is because the area they occupy is cold."

"Since when are you an expert on ghosts?" Hishigatsu asked, rolling her eyes.

"I became interested after watching Danny Phantom. But anyway, that's not fair! Your powers are gonna be easy to control! I mean, you went intangible at will!" Sakura whined.

"In-tan-gee-bull?" Tasuki asked in complete confusion.

Hishigatsu went tangible again, and she and Sakura burst into laughter.

"Well, what is it?!" Tasuki exclaimed.

Sakura looked at Chichiri (who was right next to her) and quietly asked, "Do _you_ know what it means, Chichiri-san?"

Chichiri shook his head, slightly embarrassed.

"Ah, that's okay." Sakura said with a smile. "Do you know what tangible means?"

"Hai, doesn't it mean something that you can touch, no da?"

"Yup. And if that's what 'tangible' means, and if '_in_tangible' is the opposite of 'tangible', than 'intangible' must mean…"

"Oh, I get it, no da!" Chichiri said.

"Good." Sakura said. _I should have figured that they didn't have a word like 'intangible' in ancient China. _she mentally sweatdropped.

Tasuki was still complaining, grumbling something about stupid women. Hishigatsu floated over to Tasuki and playfully (and lightly) punched his head, startling him. "Wait, I though' ya said that ya got 'ghost powers' er somethin'. So how is it I couldn't touch ya b'fore but now ya can touch me?"

"Well, I _do_ have ghost powers, but it's not like I can't touch anything. I can choose when I want to be able to go through something or for something to go through me. Well, once I master my powers, anyway." Hishigatsu said.

"But if ya just got yer powers, how d'ya know all these things about 'em?" Tasuki asked curiously.

"Well, back in my world, there was a cartoon called "Danny Phantom", in which a boy had the same powers as I do now, which is how I know about my powers." Hishigatsu said.

Tasuki was about to ask what a cartoon was, but decided against it. "That's great 'nd all, but why th' heck don't ya have legs?!"

"Hmm? Why, this is a ghost tail, silly boy. It makes it easier to fly around when I'm in my ghost form." Hishigatsu said. Then with a smirk, she extended her ghost tail and loosely swirled it around Tasuki's body, scaring the hell outta him, but at the same time making him blush from the contact.

"C-C'mon Hi-chan no baka, stop it, yer freakin' me out here!" Tasuki managed to get out.

"Wow, so there _are_ things in the world that "freak out" the mighty Gen-chan." Hishigatsu said with a smirk.

"Don't call me that! And how th' hell d'ya know about that name anyway?!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"I have my ways." Hishigatsu said, then unwrapped her tail from Tasuki. Then she concentrated, and her ghost tail turned into two legs (the pants were light blue and the shoes were deep red, incase you don't remember). Tasuki and Chichiri let out a miniscule gasp while Sakura pouted.

"It's not fair, I'll have to train by myself, while you already know what you have to do." Sakura whined. Then she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Chichiri smiling at her.

"Who says you'll have to train by yourself, no da? Unless you don't want me to help you…" Chichiri said, but he knew the girl's answer even before he'd asked the question. He smiled as he saw much gratefulness, and even a bit of admiration, in her eyes as she exclaimed, "Arigatou Chichiri-san!" Then she turned around and gave him a quick hug, which made him blush behind his mask.

"Okay, enough with th' sappy junk, shouldn't we be headin' out er somethin'?" Tasuki asked.

"Tasuki-kun's right, no da. We need to leave soon." Chichiri said.

"Why not leave tomorrow?" Sakura asked. "It's still early, can't we go and get the stuff for the trip now, and then leave tomorrow morning?"

"Hai, but there's also the fact of Miaka-chan, Taka-san, and Yui-san. We don't know when they'll be back, no da." Chichiri said.

"How d'ya know that they left?" Tasuki asked.

Chichiri shrugged his shoulders and said, "Well, they aren't here, so where else could they be, no da?"

"Good point." Tasuki said, sweatdropping.

"I'm sure that Miaka-san, Taka-san, and Yui-san will be able to catch up with us. Last time, they landed wherever Tasuki-kun was, so maybe this time it'll be the same." Sakura said with a shrug of her shoulders.

The two seishi glanced at each other, they were still a little surprised about how the two girls knew so much, but they didn't say anything about it.

"I guess you're right, no da." Chichiri said. "We'll stock up on enough supplies for seven, but we might have to go on foot, so we don't attract any unwanted attention, no da. The last thing we need is _more_ youkai attacking Mt. Taikyoku. We'll go to the palace first, and maybe Houki-sama will be able to provide us with horses then, no da."

Hishigatsu smirked at the 'on foot' part. Sakura caught this and glared. "Oh no you don't Hi-chan, If _I_ have to walk, then _you_ have to walk, _capisce_?"

"Ugh, alright, but you better let me listen to your MP3 on the trip there." Hishigatsu said.

Sakura sighed. "Fine. I doubt I'll listen to music anyway. Especially not _that_." she said, giving Hishigatsu a look that said "you-better-not-get-caught-listening-to-my-Fushigi-Yuugi-music-or-else-I'll-personally-kill-you".

"Whatever you say." Hishigatsu said, giving a look that replied "stop-worrying-baka-I'm-not-gonna-get-caught".

"Anou…not to be rude or anything, but what's an MP3, no da?" Chichiri asked, startling the two girls.

"Oh, an MP3 is a small…erm…device that…anou…you save music onto it, and you can listen to it anytime you want." Hishigatsu said. Then seeing the two seishi's still-confused looks, she sighed. "Told ya I suck at explaining stuff."

"We'll show you guys later, but for now, I think we should get ready for the trip tomorrow. It's gotta be around 2:00 already." Sakura said.

"Alright, I'll go get the supplies, and you three pack, no da." Chichiri said.

Chichiri was about to turn around when Hishigatsu said, "Matte!"

"Da?"

He turned to face her but she disappeared...and reappeared right in his face, while exclaiming "BOO!" at the top of her lungs, scaring the poor monk half to death. Tasuki and Hishigatsu burst into uncontrollable laughter while Sakura tried to suppress her laughter and resulted in her shoulders shaking and a few giggles escaping now and again.

"WHAT WAS THAT FOR, NO DA?!" Chichiri exclaimed.

"That was for all the times that _you've_ scared the hell outta someone by poppin' outta nowhere!" Hishigatsu said in between laughs.

"Ha ha, she's got a point Chichiri-san. You _do_ do that a lot." Sakura said, while walking over to Chichiri and helping him up. Then she turned to Hishigatsu and said, "But as funny as that was, you're gonna give one of us a heart attack if you do that, Hi-chan. I mean with Chichiri-san, it's okay to have a cute face pop up in front of your own. But to have such a hideous face pop up outta nowhere, jeez, sounds like Taiitsukun if ya ask me." Then she expertly dodged the punch that came straight for her head while laughing.

"Oh ha ha, very funny." Hishigatsu said, rolling her eyes and sticking her tongue out at Sakura.

"Anyway, c'mon, shouldn't you transform back now?" Sakura asked. "Do you even know _how_?"

"I guess if I just concentrate…" Hishigatsu said. Then she closed her eyes and pictured her normal body in her mind. Soon the transformation back began, but it wasn't what Sakura or Hishigatsu expected. Instead of the two blue rings surrounding her (like they'd expected), her whole body was covered in a red light, and the brightest light shone from her left shoulder. When the light cleared away from her body, she was back to her normal self, but her shoulder was still glowing a faint red. It showed a kanji character, much to their surprise.

"What does it say, Chichiri-san?" Sakura asked.

"It says 'Ghost', no da." Chichiri said.

"Sugoi!" Hishigatsu exclaimed.

"Oi, what about you, Sakura-san? Didn't ya say somethin' 'bout havin' powers too?" Tasuki asked.

"Yeah, I think I've got what we call telekinesis, the power to move things with your mind. Well, I'm sure that there's more to my powers than that, but I've only gone as far as using telekinesis." Sakura said.

"Sakura-chan, try using your powers!" Hishigatsu said happily.

"Hi-chan, my powers aren't like yours. They're not as easy to use, at least I don't think so." Sakura said.

"Aw c'mon Sakura-chan! Pleeeeeeeease?" Hishigatsu asked, while giving her best puppy-dog look.

Sakura sighed. "Fine, I'll try." she said. She looked for something to lift when she remembered the soccer ball she was still holding. _Might as well use something I've used before._

She closed her eyes, and pictured the ball floating up. And after a few seconds, the ball started rising out of Sakura's hand and into the air. But as much as that caught their attention, what also caught their attention was the red character on her throat.

She slowly lowered the ball back into her hands, and once it was fully in her grasp, she relaxed her mind and opened her eyes. "So, did I have a character?"

"Hai, it's 'Mind' no da." Chichiri said.

"That was sooooo cool Sakura-chan!" Hishigatsu exclaimed happily.

"Ha ha, arigatou, but I think your powers are cooler than mine." Sakura said. "But enough about that, we have to get ready to set out, remember?"

"Oh yeah, no da! I forgot!" Chichiri exclaimed. "I'll go get the supplies now, no da!"

"Anou, Chichiri-san?" Sakura said.

"Hai?"

"Can I…um...come with you?" Sakura asked, suddenly feeling a bit timid. "I'm already packed...so…I mean, if you wouldn't mind me coming along…"

"Okay, no da! Arigatou, I could use the help, na no da!" Chichiri said happily.

"Alright, then we'll see you two later!" Sakura said. "Ja ne!"

Then the group split up, Chichiri and Sakura to shop, and Tasuki and Hishigatsu to pack.

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(_The Next Day…_)

"Ohayo Sakura-sama!"

Sakura slowly opened her eyes to find an overly-peppy-for-so-early-in-the-morning Nyan-Nyan staring down at her. Luckily for both of them, Sakura wasn't easily startled, and just replied with a sleepy, "Ohayo Nyan-Nyan." But a scream and the sound of a pillow smacking against something showed that Hishigatsu wasn't as hard to startle, especially in the early morning. Sakura shook her head, muttering something about Hi-chan's big mouth, and got out of bed. Then she fixed herself up, got dressed, put her shoes on, grabbed her giant bag, and headed over to the dining room, where she found Chichiri already awake and drinking what she figured was tea. "Ohayo Chichiri-san."

"Ah, ohayo Sakura-san, no da!" Chichiri replied happily.

_Ugh, how can he have so much energy so early in the morning?!_ Sakura thought to herself. She took a seat across from Chichiri and sleepily helped herself to a piece of fruit from a nearby fruit basket. Just as she took her first bite, Hishigatsu stumbled into the room, looking worse than Tasuki with a hangover and Yuki (from Fruits Basket) in the morning put together. ((IP- And that's bad (XD)))

"Er…ohayo Hi-chan, no da." Chichiri said nervously.

All he got was a sleepy glare and a muttered, "Mornings should die."

Chichiri gulped and sweatdropped.

"Ah, don't worry about her, Chichiri-san. She's just not much of a morning person, as you can probably tell." Sakura said with a sigh.

Hishigatsu sat down next to Sakura and put her head down on the table tiredly. Unfortunately for her, between her body still being mostly asleep, and her powers not being fully mastered, her head went intangible and fell through the table. (n.n") Her head shot back up, still intangible, as she exclaimed, "I'm up! I'm up!" Then her head went back to normal as Sakura burst into laughter and Chichiri chuckled and shook his head a bit.

"Wha? What's so funny?" Hishigatsu asked, now fully awake (or as awake as you could be at 8:00 am while not being a morning person and having no access to caffeine whatsoever (XP)).

"Oh nothing, nothing." Sakura said. Then, upon hearing footsteps, she turned her head towards the entrance, along with Hishigatsu.

"Well, looks like Sleeping Beauty's up." Hishigatsu joked.

"Nani, no da?"

"She means Tasuki-kun." Sakura explained.

Said man walked into the room, looking almost as bad as Hishigatsu. (Keyword: Almost (XP))

"Ohayo Tasuki-kun, no da."

"Ohayo Ch'chiri, Sakura-san, baka onna." Tasuki said, putting emphasis on the last "name" with a tired smirk.

"Ugh, well two can play that game, Gen-chan." Hishigatsu said.

"Jeez, you're already at it? Well, you might as well save it for the road, we're setting out after breakfast." Sakura said with a sigh. "Oh yeah, Hi-chan, I've gotta give you my MP3."

Hi-chan perked up a bit, then glanced towards Tasuki and frowned, sighing. "I doubt I'm gonna be in the mood for _that singer_ today…does your MP3 have other music?"

"Yeah, don't worry." Sakura said. _Hopefully that'll keep them from fighting for at least most of the trip._

Chichiri and Tasuki (who woke up after having a bite to eat) were both thoroughly confused, but decided not to make anything of it.

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(_A Few Minutes Later…_)

Just as everyone finished breakfast, Hotohori and Chiriko came into the dining room.

"Oh, there you all are!" Chiriko exclaimed, as he floated over to where they were.

_SO KAWAII!!_ Sakura thought happily, her eyes sparkling. Chiriko'd always been her second favorite, as far as cuteness went.

"Chiriko-san, Hotohori-sama, no da! Where were you guys, no da?" Chichiri asked.

"Well, we were a bit busy…" Chiriko said nervously.

"Yeah, those Seiryuu scum were plotting to attack you four…multiple times!" Hotohori exclaimed. "We've been keeping them tied up all week!"

Everyone in the room except for Hotohori and Chiriko sweatdropped.

"Jeez, it's a Chinese opera singer, a floating baby with a draydle of doom, and a wolf-man from the circus. Oh, I'm scared!" Hishigatsu cried out in mock fear. "Oh Gen-chan, save me from their pitiful wrath!"

Tasuki was between laughing at the comment and beating her senseless for the name. He went with the laughing and decided to just bonk her a few extra times the next time she got him mad.

"Now Hi-chan, don't be rude! I'm sure that they can do plenty to us! Like…um…uh…" Sakura said, pretending to try and think of something they could do. "Sorry, only think I can come up with is either them boring us to death, or maybe them singing would be enough to kill us."

"Ack, don't even _joke around_ like that Sakura-chan, you'll give me nightmares!" Hishigatsu said, putting her hand on her head and widening her eyes in pretend fear.

"But seriously, I doubt they can do anything to us, considering Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama are on the same team now, ne?" Sakura said.

"I guess you're right." Hotohori said.

"Anyway heika, we were just heading out now, no da. Did Miaka-chan, Taka-san, and Yui-san go back to their world, na no da?" Chichiri asked.

"Hai, they said they should be back in a little bit, but it's been a week…" Hotohori said, obviously worried.

"Well, they probably meant a little bit in _their_ world's time." Hishigatsu said.

"Oh, I forgot about that, you're probably right, no da." Chichiri said.

"But then when do you think they'll be back?" Hotohori asked.

"I dunno. But hopefully when they get back here, they'll land where we are." Hishigatsu said. "And if not, I'm sure Chichiri-san wouldn't mind making a quick pick-up trip, right?"

"Hai, no da." Chichiri said. "So I guess we should get going now, no da."

"Alright then, enough talkin'! I'm getting' tired've waitin' 'round here!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"Gambatte, and be careful." Hotohori said.

"Yes, and give miko-sama and Taka-san our regards!" Chiriko said.

"Hai, we will, no da. But heika, Chiriko-san, you two be careful as well. If youkai were able to attack Mt. Taikyoku once, you never know when they might attack again, no da." Chichiri said.

"Ja ne!"

And with that, the group of four set out on their journey. But little did they know, they were being observed...

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"So, it has begun, has it? Well, we'll see how long those mortals last…"

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IP - Phew! I think that one was even longer than the last! Ooh, not only do the girls find out they have powers, but there were bits and pieces of (attempted) WAFF as well! (grin) Please R&R! (n.n)


	9. Tenkou

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Konnichiwa minna-san! (n.n) Now that they've set out, I've gotta figure out where this story'll go. Ooh, and the baddie made his appearance! (n.n)

Tenkou - (glare) I said TWO FRICKIN' SENTENCES!!

IP - Oh, be quiet you! I was planning on you not saying anything until, like, the 12th chapter or something, but I didn't want the story to go that slow, so I let you make a miniscule appearance. (n.n)

Tenkou - (glare) You'll be hearing from my lawyer. (stomps off)

Chichiri - (walks in, sees Tenkou stomping off) (sweatdrops) What'd you do _this_ time, no da?

IP - Nothing, nothing at all! (n.n) Anyway, it'll be easier to just say that I only own mah OCs and storyline instead of saying what I _don't_ own, which is a lot of other things (XD)

Chichiri - Enjoy the chapter, na no da! (n.n)

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 9 - Tenkou

_**8 Days Later…**_

"Are we there YET?!"

Chichiri and Sakura sighed. "No, no da, we're not there yet."

Silence…

More Silence…

"How about now?" Hishigatsu asked.

That was the last straw for Sakura. Tasuki and Hishigatsu were doing this for the past four days, and the four days before that (the first four days on the road) they were arguing non-stop until Chichiri threatened to stuff Tasuki in his kasa and drop him in the middle of the ocean if he didn't stop. Oh yeah, that shut him up.

Until Hishigatsu decided to play the 'lets annoy Sakura by continually asking "are we there yet?" game' and he decided to join in.

So much for a peaceful trip.

Sakura turned to Hishigatsu and gave her a glare that would probably make even Tenkou shrink in his spot. "Does it _LOOK_ like we're there yet?!"

"Demo--"

"But nothing! I gave you my MP3 for a reason now LISTEN TO THE FUCKIN' MUSIC AND SHUT YOUR FUCKIN' TRAP!!"

After she finished, she stomped ahead. You could practically see the angry aura around her. Kinda like Kagome, from Inuyasha. Only thing is she didn't have the power to sit anyone. Luckily for them.

"Jeez, never seen her snap before. She's usually pretty calm." Hishigatsu said, surprised. "Oh well, might as well just listen to the music."

She took out the MP3, put on the headphones, and put the FMA music on (she's still mad at Tasuki). She turned it up full blast, not caring if the two seishi heard. But the two seishi were a little preoccupied at the moment.

"Should we go after 'er?" Tasuki asked.

"No, we don't all need to go after her, no da. It's getting late anyway, why don't you and Hi-chan set up camp and get dinner ready while I go search for Sakura-san, no da?" Chichiri suggested.

Tasuki simply nodded and went over to Hi-chan to try and tell her what's going on. In truth, he was grateful for the monk's offer, going to find Sakura in the state she's in would be like writing his death wish, especially since he was partially the cause of her outburst.

"Oi, baka onna, we're stopping' fer th' night." Tasuki said after yanking the headphones off of Hishigatsu.

"Jeez, y' didn't have to yank the headphones off like that, I could hear you just fine." Hishigatsu said. Then with a sigh, she asked, "What do you need me to do?"

"Ya think ya c'n handle gettin' firewood?" Tasuki asked. "I'll go get dinner."

"As long as I don't have to help prepare 'dinner', then fine." Hishigatsu said. Then with a nod, they both split up.

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After Chichiri watched Tasuki walk off to talk to Hi-chan, he turned towards the direction that he saw Sakura-san stomp off in. He sighed, bracing himself for the worst, as he walked down the path, following her footprints in the dirt path.

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Sakura stomped through the forest, not sure where she was going but at the same time not caring. She just wanted to get away from them, from all of them, just to be alone. She walked into a small clearing, with only a few lone trees, and decided to stay here and try to relax. She sat down under the shade of the largest tree and closed her eyes. She tried to calm down and steady her breathing but couldn't. She sighed, she was starting to feel a bit depressed. _I can't believe snapped like that in front of Chichiri! I'm so embarrassed!_

She sighed again and reopened her eyes. _I dunno, I still feel angry but I can't bring myself to just scream out curses like a certain two infuriating, baka red-heads. Jeez, I wish that I could sit someone, that always works for Kagome. And I'm not gonna be one of those idiots who go and kick the nearest thing when they're mad, I know how that always ends up._ she sighed._ Normally I'd just bounce my soccer ball around a bit, but I ran off without it…Ugh, I feel like I'm getting angrier by the second!_

Sakura normally bottles up the emotions she feels would bother other people, like sadness and anger, so these feelings were new to her, and she was a bit confused. She hadn't even noticed that every time she felt the anger rise up, that one of the nearby trees would get slightly scorched by an invisible sort of flame. Since she had no conscious control over her powers, they would apparently come out with her emotions, making it dangerous--and maybe even lethal--for her to get extremely mad. Of course, she didn't know this, but a certain monk who had managed to basically track her down via her footprints, her ki, and her angry sort of aura (he's still about 20 or 30 feet away from where she is, but he's still got a good idea) figured it out right away. He had to admit, he wasn't all that thrilled with having to disturb her in this unstable state, for fear of getting scorched on the spot. He was about to walk towards the clearing, but instead tried a different approach. He sat down, closed his eyes, and gently sent a calming wave of ki to Sakura, in an attempt to calm her down. She unconsciously pushed his ki away, which just made him push back, still making sure to keep his ki gentle and calm.

Sakura-san, it's only me, Chichiri, no da.

Oh great, now I'm hearing voices?! Jeez, I really am crazy. she answered him without even realizing it.

Heh, and if your crazy, then what does that make me, no da?

Ack, wait, I'm _not_ hearing things?! she sighed. Gomen nasai Chichiri-san, I didn't mean to get mad or run off before. Please don't be angry with me!

Chichiri's telepathic voice turned down to it's deep and comforting octave, though he still kept the speech habit. Sakura-san…no one's angry with you, no da. Why would you think that, na no da? He could feel her aura going from a reddish angry to a now calmer blue, but he could also feel sorrow mixed in, making him worry.

Sakura-san, daijoubu ka, no da?

Iie, because I let my emotions get the best of me, and now you probably all hate me.

He could feel that there was nothing else he could do like this at this point, that there was only one thing he could do. He opened his eyes, cutting off the link, and walked off.

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_Chichiri-san?_ Sakura thought, feeling his presence leave. She let her shoulders slump down, figuring that he just gave up on her. _Guess I was always meant to be alone._ Tears wanted to escape, yet they never surfaced.

All of a sudden, she felt strong arms wrap around her from behind, startling her and making her body tense up in alarm.

"It's okay, it's only me, no da." Chichiri said quietly, and Sakura relaxed.

"Chichiri-san…I thought…" she whispered. Her eyes stung from tears that had finally surface and desperately wanted to fall, her throat was filled with sobs begging to be let out. _No, not now, not in front of him…Please…I don't want him…to see me like this…_ Sakura thought, desperately trying to push tears back. _Convenient that I couldn't cry before, when I was alone, but then when Chichiri-san comes, so do the tears. But I can't…let him see me…like this…_

But it was too late. The tears escaped, first flowing down her face one by one, then escalating, as she tried to wipe them off and push herself away from Chichiri. But Chichiri only held her closer, as he whispered, "It's alright to cry."

And that was it. She turned around and buried her face in his chest, letting the tears flow freely as he continued to stroke her hair in a comforting way and whispered soothing words to her as she let all of her piling grief be washed away in the flow of her tears.

She would once in a while start apologizing, which then resulted in more tears, which then resulted in more apologizing, which then resulted in even _more_ tears…the scene would have been pretty funny if it wasn't for the reason that she was crying in the first place. After she was all cried out, she lifted her head up to look at Chichiri's maskless face (he had his mask off when he found her). She stared at Chichiri's kind, caring, concerned face and smiled. He met her gaze and also smiled, a true, genuine smile. "Better now, no da?"

"Hai…and…arigatou, Chichiri-san. I must look really pathetic right now, huh?" she said, braking her gaze as it shifted downward in embarrassment.

"Iie, everyone needs to let their emotions out, it's only natural, and it doesn't make you pathetic." Chichiri said.

She only nodded in response. They both stood back up. "So, ready to go back now, no da?"

"Anou…if you don't mind, I don't really wanna go back yet…" Sakura said.

Chichiri smiled and said, "It's alright. How about we take a walk until you're ready?"

"Hai, that sounds…nice…" she said, then she sighed. "Gomen nasai for all this and…arigatou."

"Dou itashimashite, no da."

Then the two of them walked off.

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(_A Few Minutes Later…_)

"It's been forever since Chiri left! What's takin' 'im so long! I'd've dragged 'er back by now!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"Anou, Tas-chan, it's only been 30 minutes." Hishigatsu said with a sigh.

"So? AND DO NOT CALL ME THOSE STUPID NICKNAMES!!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"Aww, what's the matter, Tas-tas? You cranky? Maybe you should take your mid-evening nap." Hishigatsu said 'sweetly'.

"Damn it baka onna, cut it out!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"What's the matter baka ookami, can't think of anything better than 'baka onna'?" Hishigatsu said. "I thought you were better than that."

"Oh trust me, I can come up with better names, bakayarou." Tasuki said, glaring. _Just…not right now. _he thought, mentally sweatdropping.

Just as they were about to start throwing insults at each other, Chichiri and Sakura came back.

"They're at it _again_?" Sakura said more than asked, sighing. "Don't they ever get tired of fighting like that?"

"Doubt it, no da. Tasuki-kun's always looking for a fight, na no da." Chichiri said.

"Will you two ever grow up?" Sakura asked the two red-heads, who just glared in response.

"Lets just have dinner and get to sleep, no da. We've got another long day ahead of us, na no da." Chichiri said, sitting down near the fire.

"Oh great, another day of walking. Just what I didn't need." Hishigatsu said.

"Hi-chan, you shouldn't be complaining. The only reason you're like this is because you're spoiled, you're used to having your bike, or your roller blades, or your parents' car to take you from place to place." Sakura said with a sigh. And besides, if I would have told you that you were gonna be traveling with Tasuki on foot while we were at home, you would have thought it was a dream come true. she added telepathically, startling Hishigatsu slightly.

Okay, but that was before I found out how annoying he could be. And how the heck are we talking telepathically?

I dunno. I guess my powers go a bit beyond telekinesis. But anyway, how could you not know he was gonna be annoying? You practically memorized every aspect of his character, personality, everything, and you're telling me you didn't know?

I knew, I just…didn't think that we'd wind up fighting like this. But I've gotta admit, as annoying as it is, I still enjoy it, because it gives me a chance to talk to him.

Sakura mentally sighed. I suppose that _is_ better than not talking at all. Just try to tone it down, 'kay? You're kinda wearing thin on mine and Chichiri's last nerves.

Deal. But what happened after Chichiri went to look for you? How come you guys were gone so long?

…

Sakura-chan?

I…don't wanna talk about it. C'mon, we'd better start eating and talking like normal people before they suspect something. Sakura quickly covered up. She wasn't ready to tell Hishigatsu, she was still a bit afraid.

…Fine. But if anything's ever bothering you, you can talk to me, 'kay? I'm your friend, remember that.

Sakura mentally sighed, there was that word, friend, again. She still didn't feel like she was worthy of having a friend as good as Hishigatsu, or Tasuki, or especially Chichiri, not after what she did. I mean, Chichiri did something in his past, but his wasn't really his fault, unlike what happened to her. She did it, not because her better judgment was clouded by anger and assumed betrayal, but because she wanted to. She felt anger, and she _was_ betrayed, but it didn't cloud her judgment, no, quite the opposite, it _joined_ her judgment, making her sure about what she was doing, making her sure that it was the right thing, making her actually _enjoy_ it. Until she did it. Until it was all over, and she thought about what a petty thing she'd gotten angry about, how stupid it was, but by that time it was all too late. She couldn't save him, she couldn't save them, and she was punished with the memories, and the scar on her stomach that no one had yet to see. She mentally sighed again, and just as Hishigatsu was going to ask her if she was okay, she cut off the link between the two of them. She took her meal, a piece of cooked meat, and ate it slowly, her body and mind both tired after a long, emotional day. Hishigatsu and Chichiri both noticed her slow eating and dazed look, and were both worried. But they didn't say anything as they continued eating their meal. After everyone was done, Tasuki was the first one to retire to his makeshift bed (a few blankets and a pillow that he took from Mt. Taikyoku) and within minutes, his snoring could be heard throughout the whole forest, and he'd magically gone from being neatly under the blankets to being sprawled out everywhere and tangled up in the blankets.

Sakura and Hishigatsu sweatdropped while Chichiri, being used to the sight, just rolled his eyes.

Hishigatsu was the next one to head to bed, and surprisingly, she rivaled Tasuki in his speed to sprawl out and tangle herself in her blankets.

Now it was just Chichiri and Sakura sitting near the fire. He figured this would be the best time to talk to her. "Anou, Sakura-san?"

Sakura looked up from her game of 'let's stare holes into the ground' (a.k.a. she was embarrassed for what happened before and that she was alone with him now, so she just decided to stare at the floor for a _long_ time) and slowly looked at Chichiri. "Hai?"

"Daijoubu ka, no da?"

"Hai, I'm just a little tired, I guess. Not physically, but, well…" she started, and she could feel her face starting to flush from embarrassment and nervousness. _Okay, calm down, it's just Chichiri, just Chichiri… just the person who leant me a shoulder to cry on…ha ha, actually, it was more like a whole body…god he smelled good! GAH! WHAT THE HELL AM I THINKING?! I don't like him like that! And he definitely doesn't like me like that either._

…

…

_But he did smell good. _she mentally sweatdropped._ Oh god, my face is probably beet red now, but as long as he doesn't take off his mask, then maybe I'll have a chance… _(-.-)_ great, he's taking it off. The gods don't like me much, do they. _she mentally sweatdropped again.

Chichiri took his mask off, and Sakura quickly looked down. She glanced back up to see him quickly putting the mask back on, a confused but sad look on his face, and she realized what she just did and what he mistook it for. _GAH! SAKURA NO BAKA!! I'M SO STUPID! STUPIDSTUPIDSTUPIDIDIOTIDIOTIDIOT!!_

"Matte Chichiri-san, gomen, I didn't mean to offend you. I…well…I looked away because I'm sorta…still embarrassed about what happened before…but you don't have to put your mask back on. I didn't look away because of your…scar." _Actually, one of the reasons I like you is your scar, but I can't say that out loud._ (U.U)

Chichiri stopped midway in putting his mask back on (he had it so it was covering his face but he was still holding it) and lowered it, relief and a bit of embarrassment (for assuming that was the reason she looked away) in his face. "You don't have to apologize, no da. And you shouldn't be embarrassed about before."

"Demo…I've never cried in front of anyone before, not even when--" Sakura started, then stopped abruptly, realizing what she was about to say. "Gomen Chichiri-san, I'm tired. Oyasumi." She quickly got up and walked to her bed, laying down and throwing the covers over her head in embarrassment once more. _Seems like no matter what I do, I always wind up looking like an idiot in front of Chichiri. What's wrong with me?!_

Chichiri's concern grew as he felt the turmoil of emotions in her ki and wondered what she was about to say before she stopped herself. He decided that since he wasn't tired, he'd might as well meditate. He sat down, closed his eyes, and tried to empty his mind, but his concern for Sakura and the way she'd acted got in the way.

_Maybe…maybe it had something to do with her scar. I wish I could do something to help her, but I think I've done all I could for today. Hopefully, she'll come to trust me enough to let me help her._

_**And maybe, in turn, she'll help you.**_ a voice in the back of his head added.

_No, I'm not doing this for my own selfish purposes. Besides, I already made up with Hikou, and I've come to terms with my past._

_**Oh really? Is that the reason for your constant questioning, your wish to just go back and ask why? Is that what you call 'coming to terms with your past'?**_

Chichiri gave up trying to meditate and instead headed to bed. He put his mask to the side, laid down, and closed his eye, but that voice…his 'inner self', I guess it could be called…his question kept repeating in his head.

_Am I __**truly**__ over the past…?_

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(_The Next Day…_)

The morning went by quickly and quite smoothly. They got up, packed up their stuff, and left, with minor arguments in between from Hishigatsu and Tasuki.

They were now nearing the end of the forest they've been traveling in for the last three days and approaching Konan's capital, where they'd check up on Houki and young Boushin.

But for now, they were still pretty much in the middle of nowhere.

"You say that we should reach the palace by tonight?" Sakura asked Chichiri. The two of them were walking upfront, yesterday's events in the back of both of their minds, while Hishigatsu and Tasuki were in the back, holding a normal conversation for once. But most likely it'd wind up with an insult, then the bickering would start up again and either Chichiri or Sakura would have to go back there and break it up. Pretty repetitive, ne?

"Hai, we should be able to reach the palace a little after sunset if we hurry, but if not, then the latest we'll get there is late tonight into early tomorrow morning, no da."

"So you mean we're gonna pull an all-nighter?! Dear Lord, this is _not_ gonna be pretty."

"Nani, no da?"

"Here's an equation you should always remember. Hi-chan + no sleep trouble. Big time." she sighed. "I remember the time we had to pull an all-nighter to do a project we'd both forgotten about. Not a very pleasant experience. First, she gets cranky, which is going to wind up being worse than it sounds because, knowing Tasuki, he'll aggravate her even more than normally, which will then lead to the second event, which would be her going on a rampage and ripping everything that comes within eyesight to shreds. I had to hide in a closet, project and all, until she collapsed from exhaustion." Sakura said. Then with a laugh, she added, "Hey, I figured out a way to beat Tenkou, just don't let her have any sleep and lock her in a room with him for a few minutes!"

"Anou…I think, if anything, we'll be arriving there after a good night's sleep then, no da." Chichiri said nervously, sweatdropping, and Sakura laughed.

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(_Meanwhile…_)

"I'm bored. Tasuki, why not tell me about your adventures as a shichiseishi?" Hishigatsu suggested.

"Ne, but don't'cha already know 'bout 'em?"

"Hai, but I think it'd be cooler to hear it from your point of view."

" 'kay then, where should I start?"

"Hmm, I've always wanted your point of view on your fight with Tamahome after he took the kudoku, it was cool in the book, but it was mainly focusing on Naki-chan, so there wasn't too much on the actual fight."

Tasuki cracked up while repeating what caught his attention. "Naki-chan?! Oh man, I wish we woulda thought about givin' 'im a name like that b'fore! Naki-chan, hah! Man, can't wait 'till we find 'im so I can call 'im that! Whoo-boy, this'll be fun!"

"Tas-chan, c'mon, I wanna hear the story!" Hishigatsu whined.

"Okay, fine, and don't call me that!"

"Alright, just tell the story!"

Tasuki started with a smirk. "Well, me, Miaka 'n Chiri went t' go get Tama from Kutou, and t' make a long story short, we found 'im, but when we did, he was 'bout t' land a fatal blow on Miaka. So I dove and tackled 'er outta the way while takin' a tiny blow t' my head, but being as strong--"

"And thickheaded!" Hishigatsu added with a chuckle.

"Yer lucky I'm getting' inta this story now. Anyway, since I was so strong, the blow didn't bother me and I stood back up. After makin' sure that Miaka was safe with Ch'chiri, I charged in with my tessen, ready to kick his sorry ass. We fought fer a while, but I obviously had th' upper hand, bein' th' strong warrior that I am. I used my seishi speed and--"

"Wait, Nakago had a barrier up, so you couldn't have used your seishi speed." Hishigatsu pointed out.

"Yeah, well, whatever! Point is, I ran up behind him, and was about to strike the final blow with my tessen, when Miaka shouted fer me t' stop. So being the kind, caring, merciful person I am--"

"Uh, dude, you were about to kill him, and then you go and call yourself 'kind, caring, and merciful'?"

"Well yeah, I was about t' strike the final blow, but I _didn't_, did I? Nope, cuz I'm a kind, caring, merciful person and you know it!"

"No your not."

"Yes I am!"

"No your not!"

"Yes I am!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"Yes!"

"I SAY NO AND THERE AIN'T NOTHIN' YA CAN DO 'BOUT IT!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"Fine, have it your way." Hishigatsu said calmly.

Silence…

More silence…

"DAMMIT!!"

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(_A Few Hours Later…_)

"I'm glad we finally got out of that stupid forest!" Hishigatsu said, shielding her eyes from the bright sunlight. "But does it have to be so damn bright out here?!"

"Hi-chan, cut it out, your not the only one who has to put up with the sun being so bright." Sakura said.

"And why does Chichiri-san get to have shade?! I want a kasa too!!" Hishigatsu whined.

Sakura was about to argue back, but then she realized that she felt a tinge of jealousy towards the content monk, who had at least had more shade than them. But she shook it off and smiled, they were almost near the outskirts of town, which meant that they were almost at the palace, which meant she'd get as much rest and shade as she wanted. She sighed as Hishigatsu continued to rant on and on about how hot she was because of the sunlight and how stupid people were for not inventing the air conditioner or sunglasses by now, and of course Tasuki threw in his two cents every once in a while, making matters worse. After a few minutes, Chichiri sighed, getting the hint. He took off his kasa, walked over to Hishigatsu, and put his kasa on Hishigatsu's head, shutting her up and her scowl being replaced by a relaxed grin. He walked back up next to Sakura and they both sighed.

"Gomen nasai about that, and arigatou. That should keep her quiet." Sakura said.

Chichiri sighed again. "Good thing we're pretty much there, no da. We should be able to make it to the outskirts of town by sundown, na no da. And hopefully Hi-chan will be able to stay awake an extra few hours so we can make it to the palace, no da."

"I'm sure if we tell her she'll be able to sleep in a palace bed, she'll gladly stay up a few extra hours." Sakura said, laughing slightly. "So, while we're walking, why not tell me a bit about Houki-sama and Boushin-sama?"

"Hm, well, what do you want to know, no da?"

"I know what they look like, and I know that Houki-sama is Hotohori-sama's wife and empress, and Boushin-sama is Hotohori-sama's son and heir to the throne. But other than that, I really don't know anything about them. Like, is there anything that I should or shouldn't do or say in front of Houki-sama?"

"Well, Houki-sama is very kind, and I'm sure that there's nothing that she'd take offense to, so you shouldn't worry, no da!" Chichiri said happily, smiling as relief flooded Sakura's face.

"Good, but I still really don't wanna do anything to make her upset. And…uh…is Hotohori-sama still a touchy subject for her?" Sakura asked. "Just incase me or Hi-chan slip up."

"I'm not sure, but you should watch what you say just incase, no da." Chichiri said.

"Oh…okay." Sakura said, obviously still worried.

Chichiri was about to say something, but something else caught his attention. A small body laying limp about 15 feet away, an extremely wrinkled-up old woman in elegant robes, who could only be one person. "Taiitsukun-sama, no da!" Chichiri exclaimed, grabbing Tasuki, Sakura, and Hishigatsu's attention. Chichiri and Tasuki started for her when both Sakura and Hishigatsu realized something.

"Matte!"

Sakura's symbol glowed as she restrained Chichiri and Tasuki, while Hishigatsu's symbol glowed as she transformed into her ghost form.

"What th' hell d'ya think yer doing?!" Tasuki exclaimed.

Sakura would have replied, but she was focusing most of her powers on Chichiri, who was silently battling the rookie for control over his body's movement.

"Suzaku no Chichiri…Suzaku no Tasuki…" Taiitsukun whispered hoarsely. "Onegai…I just…broke free…help me before…he takes control again…onegai…"

"Sakura-san, let us go!! Whose side are you on?!" Chichiri exclaimed, slowly getting control over his body.

"Would you bakas shut up and think for a second?! Do you _really_ think that Taiitsukun would have the power to push Tenkou out at this point? Do you _really_ think that this is your Taiitsukun right here? Are you both naïve, or just stupid?" Hishigatsu yelled.

Both seishi stopped struggling and looked at Hishigatsu, which she took as her sign to continue.

"If Taiitsukun had the power to push Tenkou out, why not do it before? And if she just broke free, then why would she come to you two first, instead of going and freeing the kami?"

"Freeing…the kami?" Chichiri repeated, confused.

"What, is there an echo in here? Yes, freeing the kami. Did you _really_ think that they would just abandon this world? No, rather they were captured, their powers weakened because they didn't have any miko or seishi left. But I'm suspecting that Byakko-sama put up a bit of a fight, since he still has two seishi that are alive, but since they're old and their powers are pretty worn out, it probably wasn't a good situation for Byakko-sama. And even though Seiryuu-sama only has four seishi left, the power that the miko gives is pretty much ten times that of any seishi, so that enabled him to escape with Suzaku-sama, who had five seishi plus a miko, therefore giving him the most power of the four kami." she concluded.

Taiitsukun lifted herself off of the ground and spoke in a deep voice that all four could tell was not her own. "How did you know?!"

Hishigatsu smiled and even started laughing a bit while Chichiri, Tasuki, and Taiitsukun looked at her oddly. "The funny thing is that I didn't."

"Nani?!" the three exclaimed.

Sakura released her hold on Chichiri and Tasuki, and then she spoke. "Well, since I had to keep these two in check, Hi-chan agreed to voice my ideas for me. And they were only theories, but…" she smirked at Taiitsukun and continued. "…your reaction was proof enough that I was right. You played right into our trap."

Taiitsukun scowled at the two girls, then smirked. "Seems that Suzaku-seikun and Seiryuu-seikun were right to choose you two. You're a lot more perceptive then those seishi no baka."

Then Taiitsukun's body began to change, and after a few seconds, Taiitsukun's body looked like Tenkou's, only he was dressed in the robes of the Emperor of the Heavens. ((IP - That's Taiitsukun, for anyone who doesn't know, but whenever I write Taiitsukun I think of the old lady, so the Emperor of the Heavens is supposed to be the form you see in books 13 and 18, you know, the non-wrinkly, elegant man (n.n)))

"Tenkou you bastard, get the hell outta Sunakake-babaa!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"Oh sure, I'll get out!" Tenkou said in a happy, sarcastic tone while rolling his eyes. "Did you really think that I'd just get out because you told me to?"

"Grr…fine! I'll force you out! REKKA--" Tasuki started, raising his tessen, but Chichiri stopped him. "What the hell?!"

"Tasuki-kun, if you attack him, then you'll hurt Taiitsukun-sama too." Chichiri said, taking his mask off and glaring at Tenkou as he spoke.

"Goddammit!" Tasuki exclaimed in frustration, sheathing his tessen.

"No, by all means, attack me! This body won't get hurt…much!" Tenkou said, cackling in a Tomo-like fashion.

"Temee…!" Chichiri hissed in a surprisingly un-Chichiri-like voice, his eye narrowed in anger and disgust.

"And what are you going to do, little houshi? You don't nearly have enough power to match a kami. So, what will you do, Suzaku no seishi and little ningen onna?" Tenkou asked, smirking in victory. "Well, why not think it over while you keep my new pets entertained?"

Before they could ask what he meant, he disappeared. A growling noise made them turn around to see pairs of glowing red eyes coming from the forest. The creatures walked into the light to reveal their appearance. The front half of their body, from the middle of their stomach to (and including) their head was like that of a lion's body, and the back half of their body was like that of a lizard's, the giant tail included. There were hundreds of them, closing in all around the four, as they quickly realized.

"What th' fuck are these things?!" Tasuki exclaimed, unsheathing his tessen.

"They look like chimeras, like the ones from Fullmetal Alchemist, don't they?" Hishigatsu said, turning to Sakura.

"Yeah, they do." Sakura said with a slight nod. "But they're probably youkai look-alikes."

"You've seen these creatures before, no da?" Chichiri asked.

"Well, not in real life, but we'll explain later. We need to retreat, there's no way we could take on all of these things." Sakura said.

"And how d'ya think we're gonna do that?!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"Just gimme a chance to think!" Sakura exclaimed. She closed her eyes, and after a few seconds, they shot back open. "Hi-chan, I know you've never done this before, but you've seen the show enough, so you should be able to handle it. I need you to try to make and hold a barrier around us, and Chichiri, while she does that, you do whatever you need to do to teleport us out of here."

They nodded and got to work, Chichiri gathering his ki for the teleportation and Hishigatsu making and shakily holding an orange-ish barrier. Tasuki stood by Hishigatsu, supporting her and getting ready with his tessen just incase a chimera-youkai broke through. After a minute or two, Chichiri was ready to teleport them.

"Okay Hi-chan, I need you to hold the barrier for now, and when I tell you to let down the barrier, you let it down quickly, understand?" Chichiri said.

"Got it."

He put his kesa on the floor and tapped his shakujou on it. He let Sakura and Tasuki go through first, then he exclaimed, "Now!"

Hishigatsu let down the barrier and jumped onto Chichiri's kesa, followed quickly by Chichiri. The kesa itself disappeared a millisecond before the chimera-youkai pounced, tearing at what was now just air.

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"That was close, no da." Chichiri said as the four of them walked towards the palace. All of those problems had made it very late, and very few people were out, yet the palace lights were still on. The group was heavily panting, especially Hishigatsu (back in her human form) and Chichiri. Chichiri landed them right outside of town, so they normally would have made good time, but since they were so worn out, they weren't able to travel as fast as normal. But now they finally made it to the palace.

"Halt! Who goes there?!" one guard asked. (Such a typical line, ain't it? (XP))

The group of four walked up to the guards.

"Suzaku no Chichiri and Suzaku no Tasuki." Chichiri replied, and as proof, Chichiri lifted his right pant leg to reveal his symbol (sho), and Tasuki rolled up his right sleeve to reveal his symbol (tsubasa).

The guard nodded in approval, and their symbols died down. Chichiri pulled his pant leg back down and Tasuki rolled his sleeve back down as the guard began to speak. "Gomen nasai Chichiri-sama, Tasuki-sama. We can't be too careful."

"Iie, it's nothing to apologize about, no da." Chichiri said.

"Demo, who are the two young ladies with you?" another guard asked, eyeing them suspiciously.

"They're friends of ours, and it has been ordered that they travel with us, no da." Chichiri said, making sure not to give away any information. He sent a quick telepathic message to all three of them, telling them not to give away any more information than that. They all mentally agreed and Chichiri was satisfied. He turned his attention back to the guards and asked, "May we see empress Houki?"

"Oh, hai, of course Chichiri-sama! Please, come inside, you know where your rooms are." The guard said. Then he turned to Sakura and Hishigatsu and continued. "There are two spare rooms right next to Chichiri-sama's, I'll have a servant show you two ladies to them. Come, empress Houki will meet with you shortly."

The doors opened and they walked inside.

"Anou, since the girls' rooms are next to mine, I'll take them to their rooms, if you don't mind, no da." Chichiri said.

"Oh, hai Chichiri-sama, as you wish." the guard said. Then he ran off to inform Houki of their guests as said guests made their way towards their rooms. Once they were all alone, Hishigatsu spoke.

"What was that all about, Chichiri-san? Why so hasty to accompany us to our rooms?"

"I didn't want to say it before, but I feel a faint evil aura coming from somewhere in the palace, no da. But it's hard to tell where for multiple reasons, na no da." Chichiri said.

"Reasons like…" Sakura said, leaving him to finish the sentence.

"Well, for one there's evil aura all over the place nowadays, so it's hard to pinpoint an exact location, no da. Another reason is because it's so small, so either it's weak and nothing to worry about, or it's in hiding and getting ready for an attack, no da." Chichiri sighed wearily. "I have a feeling it's the latter of the two, na no da." he said. "But I'm guessing that the biggest reason is that I've exhausted most of my ki, no da. Tomorrow I should be rested up enough to do a thorough scan of the palace grounds, no da. But for now we should get settled down. We have to go meet Houki-sama soon, no da."

The group turned another few corners until they came to a row of rooms. Tasuki entered his personal room, and a few doors down, Chichiri stopped at his door. "This is my room, and the two rooms over here…" he said, guiding them to the two doors to the right of his, "…are yours. Choose whichever you want, no da."

And with that, Chichiri went into his room. The two girls peeped into both rooms.

"Hmm, they're both pretty much the same. How about you take the one to the right of Chiri's room, so maybe you can find a hole in the wall to--" but Hishigatsu couldn't finish this statement due to hard bonking on the head from a flushed Sakura. "Ow! Ouch! Owie! Itai! Owchie! Okay! I give, I give!"

Sakura stopped bonking Hishigatsu on the head and playfully glared at her. "Maybe we should have found a room next to Gen-chan, I'm sure you would have had plenty of fun sticking your head through the wall using your new-found powers and, erm, _spying_ on him, to say the least." she shot back.

Hishigatsu couldn't say anything to this, considering that she probably would have wound up doing that, despite her new "relationship" with him, which consisted of them constantly bickering and acting like they'd rather be stuck in a room with rabid wolverines with their hands and feet tied down with 10-ton weights than spend time with each other.

"Thought so." Sakura said. She plopped down on her bed and invited Hishigatsu to join her. "Oh, and you'd better hope Chichiri-san didn't hear you referring to him so casually. Remember, they get insulted from something like that here."

"Yeah, I know, but it gets kinda annoying to call him 'Chichiri-san' when he's not around." Hishigatsu said.

"Yeah, I know, I mean, you have no clue how much I want to just exclaim 'Chiri-kun!' and glomp him to death!" Sakura said with a laugh. "But I'd rather be patient and mature and just put up with calling him 'Chichiri-san' then have him upset and maybe even uncomfortable with me."

"Hmm, you know, now that I think about it, he hasn't gone chibi at all yet, has he?" Hishigatsu asked.

"Actually he did, but you weren't there." Sakura said.

"Aww, no fair!" Hishigatsu whined. "I like the bandit boys as much as the next guy, er, _girl_, but the monk's cute too, especially when he goes chibi!"

"Ha ha, you should've seen him! He was sooooo kawaii!!" Sakura exclaimed happily, letting out a tiny fangirl squeal of pleasure. "First, after I let him try bouncing my soccer ball, he went chibi and started pouting because the ball bounced up on his knee then came down on his head. It was so funny and kawaii!! (.) Then, when I let my fangirl-side slip and I told him that him chibily pouting like that was the cutest thing I've ever seen, he disappeared, and then reappeared on top of my head, and when he leaned over so we were face-to-face, I could've died right then and there. His face was sooooo kawaii and sooooo innocent!! (.) Then he did his cute little "da?" and we both broke into laughter. Too bad you missed it!" Sakura ranted. At the end she smiled and laughed while Hishigatsu sulked.

"No fair Sakura-chan, I wanna see him go chibi too!" Hishigatsu whined.

"Hey, after we meet with Houki-sama, how about you come to my room and we can watch a bit of Fushigi Yuugi, Fruits Basket, Inuyasha, FMA…" Sakura listed off Hishigatsu's favorite animes (not to mention her own favorites) with a smile on her face. Hishigatsu smiled back and happily agreed.

"Too bad we don't have any snacks or anything though…" Hishigatsu started, then sat up, startling Sakura. "I just remembered! Didn't we pick up snacks on the way to my house?!"

"Oh yeah! We were gonna sneak them into your room and have an 'anime night'!" Sakura said happily, remembering as well. "Well, now we're _really_ gonna have an anime night--considering we're in one!"

The two of them talked a bit more until Sakura realized something. "Hey, we never got our stuff back from Chichiri-san!" ((IP - They put Sakura's bag in Chichiri's kasa and kept Hishigatsu's bag, but in it was only Sakura's MP3, batteries, and some water canteens.))

"Oh yeah, that's right!" Hishigatsu gasped. "What if he takes the stuff out of his kasa and goes through it and sees the FY DVDs?!" she exclaimed urgently.

"He wouldn't do that…would he?" Sakura asked. They both looked at each other, and, knowing the monk's curiosity at times, bolted out the door.

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IP - I've decided to end the chappie here, it's enough that this chappie is **7193 WORDS?!** (sweatdrop) Gomen nasai for this unbearably long chappie! (sob) Well, unbearably long for my chappies, anyway. (sweatdrop) (Also, did you notice? I finally got around to using some telecommunication in the story! (n.n) Couldn't let the symbol sit around collecting cyber-dust now could I? (n.n)) Anyway, some Sakura-Chichiri WAFF, and Tenkou finally made his big appearance!

Tenkou - (pumps his fist in the air) BADDIES RULE!! (starts chanting) HELL! HELL! HELL!

Everyone - (-.-")

Nakago - _This_ is the guy I worshipped…? (-.-")

IP - Yeah…well…anyway, please R&R! (n.n")


	10. Having Some Fun and Dinner With Royalty

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Konnichiwa minna-san! (n.n) Hope y'all liked that last chappie!

Tasuki - It was just 'nother one've yer damn fillers!

IP - No, it officially introduced the baddie, so it's not a filler.

Tasuki - (whining) I didn't even get a chance t' use my tessen!

IP - (sigh) Fine, you can use it now, but first, say the disclaimer, 'kay? (n.n)

Tasuki - Fine! IP doesn' own me (and neva will) or anything' Watase-sama made, but she does own Sakura-san and that baka onna. Ha ha! (sticks tongue out) Now…REKKA SHINEN!

(fwoosh)

Taka & Nuriko - (in the path of the flame, now burnt to a crisp) TASU-KIIIIII!! (vein)

Tasuki - (gulp) See ya! (runs off)

Taka & Nuriko - GET BACK HERE!! (runs after him)

Chichiri - (sigh) …no da. (-.-")

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

(Oh, and if anyone's wondering, I'm gonna start up the playful disclaimers next chappie (n.n))

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 10 - Having Some Fun and Dinner With Royalty

The two girls bolted out the door and ran to Chichiri's room next door. Sakura had to hold Hishigatsu back from breaking down the door in a panic. Instead, Sakura calmly knocked on the door.

No answer.

She knocked again, only louder.

Still no answer.

"Ugh! That's _it_!" Hishigatsu exclaimed. Then she grabbed the handle and pushed the door, and surprisingly, it opened with no trouble.

The two girls peeped inside and looked around. The room was a bit bigger than each of theirs, with a big, elegant closet where he apparently kept his extra clothes, and a large fur rug in the middle of the room. Also, his bed was a bit bigger than theirs, and that's where they found Chichiri. He had apparently fallen asleep the minute he hit the bed, because he was laying on top of the bed, still in his same clothes and everything.

"We should leave, I don't wanna wake him up." Sakura whispered. Hishigatsu nodded and they both tiptoed out of the room and back into Sakura's. Once they went in Sakura's room, they sat back down on the bed.

"Man, he must have been really tired." Sakura said.

"Yeah, I know." Hishigatsu said. "Hey, you shut Chichiri's door, right?"

"I thought you shut it!" Sakura said, then she sighed. "I'll go."

She walked out of her room and over to Chichiri's. She decided to check on Chichiri one more time, to see if he was awake. She walked into the room and up to the bed, but what she saw worried her. Chichiri was tossing and turning in his sleep. His mask was off and she could see sweat forming on his forehead.

_Maybe…a nightmare?_ Sakura thought worriedly.

"Chichiri-san…Chichiri-san, wake up…daijoubu…wake up, it's only a dream…" Sakura said quietly.

She noticed that Chichiri stopped stirring, and smiled and breathed a sigh of relief. But her smile faded as he murmured one word, "Naze…?"

He slowly opened his eye and looked at Sakura. She smiled again when she saw that he woke up. "Konbanwa, Chichiri-san. daijoubu ka?"

"Hai, no da. Demo…how long were you here?"

"Ack! Gomen nasai Chichiri-san! I wasn't here long…Hi-chan and I just came here a few minutes ago to see if we could have our stuff back…but you were asleep, so we left…but Hi-chan left the door open…so I came back, but…you looked like you were having a bad dream or something. daijoubu ka?" she asked nervously.

"Hai, it was just a dream, no da…just…a dream…" Chichiri trailed off. _Why…after all these years…why are they bothering me…? I thought…I thought that I had finally settled my past after my fight with Hikou…so why…_

"Chichiri-san, are you _sure_ you're okay…?" Sakura asked worriedly.

"Hai, no da!" Chichiri said, faking a happy voice. He put his mask back on and teased, "You're such a mother hen, no da!"

"Well _excuse_ me for being worried!" Sakura exclaimed, pretending to be mad.

"Okay then, you're excused, no da!"

"You know, I never really liked smart-ass monks."

"Hey, you started it, no da."

"No, _you_ did, you were the one who teased me!" Sakura smiled, she was feeling more relaxed around Chichiri already.

"Anyway, you said that you wanted your stuff, right, no da?"

"Hai, and arigatou for carrying our stuff for us Chichiri-san. I hope it wasn't too much of a bother."

"Iie, of course not, no da! It was in my kasa, so it was like I wasn't even carrying anything, na no da!" Chichiri said. Then before Sakura could say anything else, he jumped off of the bed and grabbed his kasa.

"You know Chichiri-san, I've been meaning to ask you something…"

"Hai, no da?"

"How the heck can you fit something as big as my bag in or out of a tiny hat like that?"

Chichiri smiled and laughed a bit. "It's magic, no da!"

Sakura sweatdropped. "If it wasn't for everything I've seen in the past two weeks, I wouldn't believe you."

"If you still don't believe me, then watch! One…two…three…TA-DAA!" Chichiri exclaimed, pulling her giant bag out of his normal-sized kasa that Hishigatsu had given back to him upon arriving in town. Sakura's eyes bulged out so much they could've fallen out of her head! _Sugoi! It's different seeing it in real life than seeing it on TV or something!_

Chichiri was obviously pleased with her reaction, and he continued to do little magic tricks, simple tricks to him but something amazing to Sakura. His playful side got the best of him as he continued to do these little tricks, getting 'ooh's and 'aah's and little bits of applause. Hishigatsu, a minute or two later, came to see what all the noise was about, and ended up staying for the 'magic show'.

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(_A Few Minutes Later…_)

"Wow Chichiri-san, that was amazing!" Sakura exclaimed happily.

"Nah, not really, no da. Those are simple tricks if you know what you're doing, na no da." Chichiri said. "Actually, I can teach you some of those tricks when I train you, no da. Well, the simpler ones, anyway."

"Really?!" Sakura asked happily. "Sugoi!"

"No fair!" Hishigatsu whined. "Why does she get to learn cool tricks?!"

"Uh, hello, you have _ghost powers_! Doesn't get much cooler then that!" Sakura said. "You can go invisible, intangible, you can fly, you can fire ectoplasmic energy beams, you can--"

"Okay, okay, I get it!" Hishigatsu said.

"Ek-toe-pra-smik energy beams, no da?" Chichiri asked, never being more confused in his entire life.

"That orange beam-thing that I fired out of my hand. And you could just call it an energy beam, you don't have to strain yourself trying to say ectoplasmic." Hishigatsu said.

"Okay, no da." Chichiri said sheepishly. "Anyway, you two should get ready to meet with Houki-sama."

" 'kay." Hishigatsu said. Then she walked over to Sakura's giant bag and tried to pick it up, but could only get it about an inch off of the ground before she had to drop it again. "Jeez Sakura-chan, whaddya have in here, bricks?!"

"No, just clothes, school stuff, DVDs, and some other stuff." Sakura said. "Oh, and the stuff that you put in there from your bag."

"Ever heard of packing light? You were coming over my house for three days, not three months!" Hishigatsu said, laughing.

"Hey, better safe than sorry! And besides, if I forgot something then I'd have to go all the way home to get it! And I'm not in the mood to waste four dollars on the trip there and back to get something stupid like a toothbrush or something. So it's better to over-pack than under-pack." Sakura said.

"Good point." Hishigatsu said.

"Anou, do you want me to help you with your bag, no da?" Chichiri offered.

"Nah, we've got it. Thanks for the offer though." Hishigatsu said.

Then the two girls picked up the bag (with a bit of difficulty) and carried it out of Chichiri's room, a quick "see ya later!" said over their shoulders as they brought the bag into Sakura's room.

They put the bag down on Sakura's floor and closed the door. Then they sat down in front of her bag and started going through it, putting away Sakura's clothes in the drawers provided in her room, while they put Hishigatsu's books and other possessions on the side. They went through half the bag before Hishigatsu came across what she wanted. "Yatta!" she exclaimed in triumph, as she pulled out the bags of candy. Four bags of Swedish Fish, a bag of (partially melted) mini Crunch bars, a bag of (partially melted) mini Kit-Kat bars, a bag of M&Ms, a bag of tropical Skittles, and a bag of (partially melted) Hershey Kisses.

"Heaven!!" both girls chorused, sighing happily.

Hishigatsu was about to rip open the bag with the Hershey Kisses when Sakura stopped her. "Hi-chan, matte. Houki-sama is inviting us to dinner, remember? What happens if you get full off of chocolate? You wouldn't want to insult an empress by saying you don't want to eat anything, now would you?"

"'kay, got it." Hishigatsu said, gulping nervously. "After the meeting with Houki-sama, then?"

"If we still have room after then." Sakura said.

They both looked at each other and grinned. "Course we will!" they both exclaimed, laughing.

"C'mon, lets finish emptying out my bag." Sakura said.

They continued emptying out Sakura's bag as Hishigatsu reenacted Tasuki's story, ending with how he fell for her "simple trick".

"…I can't believe that he fell for that stupid trick! You've gotta be some sort of idiot to fall for that!" Hishigatsu said, laughing.

"Remember Hi-chan, they don't have the almighty Bugs Bunny to refer to, so of course he would've fell for it." Sakura said, still suppressing laughs herself.

"Hey, don't forget the almighty Daffy Duck!" Hishigatsu exclaimed, still laughing. "God, if Chichiri thought we were quacks before, I wonder what he'd say if he saw us _now_?"

"Not much, considering he doesn't know who Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck are."

"Hmm, good point." Hishigatsu said. Then she added, "Not to mention the fact that he worships a giant chicken!"

"Hi-chan, don't say that! He's _real_ here, remember?!" Sakura reprimanded. Then she scooted away from Hishigatsu saying, "What if he hits you with lightning or something?"

Laughing, Hishigatsu moved over to Sakura, put her hand on Sakura's shoulder, lifted her face up and said, " 'kay Suzaku, I'm ready!"

"Oh yeah, real nice." Sakura said, while lightly pushing Hishigatsu away as they both started laughing.

"C'mon, lets finish unpacking, I have a feeling that we're gonna have to go meet Houki-sama soon." Sakura said. She dug back into her bag and, surprised, she pulled out two giant bottles of Arizona Iced Tea ((IP - The lemon one, I--meaning we--hate those other ones like raspberry (XP))), two giant bottles of Hawaiian Punch ((IP - The regular one, Fruit Juicy Red or whatever it's called (XP) I'm very specific (coughcoughpickycough), I know (XP))), and a few plastic cups. "Score!" she exclaimed happily.

"Bonzai! Bonzai!" Hishigatsu cheered.

"Okay, okay, lets stop making noise, I'm sure everyone thinks we're crazy as it is, we don't need to confirm it." Sakura said.

"Fine, fine! Can you handle putting away the rest of your stuff? I wanna go put my stuff away." Hishigatsu said.

" 'kay, and arigatou for the help." Sakura said.

"No prob'!" Hishigatsu said.

"Oh, and let's leave the candy and drinks in my bag for later, 'kay?" Sakura asked, taking the last thing from her bag.

"Alright, considering I'd wind up eating all of the candy in one shot." Hishigatsu said, laughing.

The two of them put all of the candy and drinks back in the bag, on top of the DVD player and the DVDs. Then Hishigatsu picked up her stuff, and went into her room while Sakura continued putting away her stuff.

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(_A Few Minutes Later…_)

A soft tapping on Sakura's door jerked her out of her thoughts. "Who is it?"

"It's me, no da."

"Okay, come in." Sakura said, and Chichiri opened the door.

"Houki-sama is ready to see us, so I figured we could walk together, no da. Tasuki-kun already went down with Hi-chan, na no da." Chichiri said, before sighing. "I think the whole palace had to have heard their arguments, no da."

"But why didn't you go with them?"

"Well…I know that you don't know your way around the palace…and I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving you in the hands of the palace staff, no offense to them of course, no da." Chichiri said nervously. _Why do I feel so nervous, no da? Maybe it's just meeting Houki-sama and Boushin-sama after all this time. But…something tells me it's something else…_

"Chichiri-san?"

Chichiri snapped himself out of his thoughts and looked at Sakura. "Hai, no da?"

"Daijoubu ka? I called your name three times." Sakura said worriedly.

"Daijoubu, no da! I was just thinking, that's all, no da." Chichiri reassured.

"Well…okay, if you say so." Sakura said. Then the two of them walked out of the room.

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"Hi-chan-no-baka!"

"Gen-chan-no-baka!"

"Bakayarou!"

"Ami no b--"

"Finish that and I'll kill you!"

"Oh yeah? I'd like to see you try!"

I bet you can just guess what's going on here. (-.-") They're in the palace's dining room, waiting for Houki and Boushin to make their entrance. The door opened, but instead of Houki or Boushin, a guard came through.

"Tasuki-sama, Hi-sama, gomen nasai, but Houki-sama and Boushin-sama will not arrive for another thirty minutes. They have business that needed to be attended to, so gomen nasai once again." The guard said. But all he got in response were two very angry glares. The guard slowly backed away before breaking into a full-on sprint. The two red-head ignored the guard's terrified actions and continued arguing.

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"…so gomen nasai once again." Another guard finished telling Chichiri and Sakura the same message after finding them on their way to the dining room.

"Okay, arigatou for the message, and tell her highness Houki-sama that it's no trouble at all, no da." Chichiri said. The guard bowed and left.

"So…what should we do now?" Sakura asked.

Chichiri looked over to Sakura and smiled. "How would you like a tour of the palace, no da?"

Sakura smiled back. "Sounds fun!"

"Okay then, LET'S GO, NO DA!" he went chibi, grabbed Sakura's hand, and bolted off, the two of them laughing all the way.

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(_30 Minutes Later…_)

Sakura walked into the dining room holding a chibi Chichiri. The two of them were panting but smiling nonetheless. Sakura let Chichiri go as he turned back to normal. They both walked over to the table and sat down next to each other, across from Tasuki and Hishigatsu, who stopped arguing to look at the two of them.

"What th' hell happened t' both've ya?" Tasuki asked.

"Well…(pant) let's just say (pant) I gave her the quickest (pant) tour of the palace (pant) any world has ever (pant) experienced, no da." Chichiri managed to get out, while glancing over at Sakura and smiling.

"Yeah, this baka decides to run around the whole palace chibi, dragging me along for the ride, and then by the time we get through the whole palace, he's too tired to walk back, so I had to carry him the whole way back! If I didn't know better, I'd say he planned that out so he could get a free ride, that freeloader." Sakura said, laughing.

"Hey! I'm no freeloader, no da!" Chichiri exclaimed, pretending to be upset.

Hishigatsu and Tasuki just laughed at the two most mature of the group as they stuck their tongues out at each other.

_Jeez, I've neva seen Chiri so…I dunno…happy, I guess. I'm glad fer 'im, now that he's got Sakura-san t' help cheer 'im up. But I dunno, looks like it's getting' t' be a little' more than friendship if ya ask me…and if that's th' case, then they're gonna need help pronto, knowin' how stubborn Chiri is._ ((IP - Yeah, like you should talk?)) He glanced over at Hishigatsu and continued his thoughts. _But why is it that I feel… different, around that baka onna? I mean…I've neva felt so…__**comfortable**__, I guess, around a woman b'fore…'cept Mi-chan, of course. But it's different with Hi-chan…I mean, she's arguing with me one minute, then the next she's laughing with me and bein' my, what's the word she used?, oh yeah, buddy. So she's arguing with me one minute, then the next she's laughing with me and bein' my buddy! I jus' don' get it. Dammit, that's why I neva liked wimmen…too damn confusin'! Although I promised Mi-chan that I'd say that I only don't like who I don't like, but that's beside the point! I just can't figure 'er out, no matter how hard I try, and th' weirdest thing is that she seems t'…enjoy our fighting as much as she enjoys us talkin' like 'normal human beings' as Sakura-san said. Demo…if we're just friends, why do I feel so awkward around her? I haven't been able to come up with any insults besides 'baka onna' and I always catch myself bein' nice ta 'er…but why…? I just don't understand._

"Tasuki? Daijoubu ka?" Hishigatsu asked, leaning over and looking into Tasuki's dazed eyes. He responded with his trademark fanged grin.

"Why, were ya _worried_ 'bout little ol' me?" Tasuki asked, his voice teasing.

"Maybe, maybe not. You figure it out, Fang-boy." Hishigatsu said. Despite the nickname, her voice was serious.

Tasuki was about to respond when the doors opened once again, this time revealing a woman approximately in her twenties, with a startling resemblance to Nuriko. She was dressed in elegant violet-colored silk robes, and had an expensive-looking headpiece on, you guessed it, her head. Next to her was a young boy of about four years, in the same type of violet silk clothes, but they seemed to be more casual-like. Chichiri and Tasuki quickly got out of their chairs and bowed, Sakura and Hishigatsu following suit.

"Please rise." Houki said kindly, a smile rising on her face. "What brings you here, Chichiri-san and Tasuki-san? And who are your companions?"

"Watashi wa Bara Sakura." Sakura said, bowing again.

"Ore w--I mean, _Watashi_ wa Kamui Hishigatsu." Hishigatsu corrected after receiving the evil eye from Sakura.

"Hajimemashite, Sakura-san and Hishigatsu-san." Houki said. "Oh, you don't mind me referring to you so casually, do you?"

"Not at all, heika." Sakura said quickly, before Hishigatsu could say anything.

Houki and Boushin walked to the two seats at the head of the table and sat down, the four travelers sitting down right afterwards.

"I assume you know of the situation at hand, Houki-sama?" Chichiri asked.

"Only what my guards have heard from town; gossip, rumors, and guesses, but no solid facts." Houki said. "Do you have any news from Taiitsukun-sama?"

"Well…it seems that the problem _is_ Taiitsukun-sama. You remember Tenkou, hai?" Chichiri asked.

"Hai…of course I do." Houki said glumly.

"It seems that he, what was the word you used Sakura-san?"

"Overshadowed."

"Right, he overshadowed Taiitsukun-sama, and has control over the palace of the heavens. I'm sure even people without Suzaku's power can feel the miasma of evil that's been gathering of late." Chichiri said. "Have you seen anything…out of the ordinary on the palace grounds?"

"Iie, everything is normal around here. Demo, what _exactly_ do you mean by 'out of the ordinary'?" Houki asked.

"I mean youkai--strange creatures, but their appearances vary. So far, these youkai have one denotable figure--glowing red eyes. Odd, but true." Chichiri said.

"Odd indeed…thank goodness that nothing like that has been spotted on the palace grounds." Houki said.

"Anou, haha-ue?" Boushin said, tugging at Houki's sleeve to get her attention.

"Not now Boushin-chan, haha-ue's busy." Houki said, softly prying Boushin's hand off of her sleeve.

"Demo, haha-ue, I wanna tell Chichiri-ojii-san something!" Boushin said.

Sakura and Hishigatsu both glanced over towards Chichiri, snickering. "Ojii-san?"

"Daa, there's a twenty-two year difference between us okay, no da?!" Chichiri quietly exclaimed, his face becoming flushed in embarrassment under his mask.

"Onegai, not now Boushin-chan, haha-ue and Chichiri-ojii-san are busy talking grown-up talk." Houki said.

"Anou, Houki-sama?" Chichiri said.

"Hai?"

"Onegai, let him speak. I don't mind, no da." Chichiri said. Then he turned to Boushin, who ran up to his side. "What is it that you wanted to tell Chichiri-ojii-san?"

"I saw one of those things!" Boushin exclaimed proudly.

Chichiri, along with Houki, Sakura, Hishigatsu, and Tasuki, perked up and turned their attention towards Boushin. Chichiri tried to keep his calm, higher-pitched voice as he asked, "What do you mean by 'one of those things', no da?"

"One of those you-k-ai things, with the weird glowie eyes." Boushin said, visibly happy that he was helping out.

"When did you see it, no da?"

"Anooooooooou…" Boushin said, putting a finger to his chin cutely, as if he was thinking. "I think it was yesterday!"

Chichiri gulped and tried to keep his voice calm so he wouldn't frighten Boushin. "And where did you see it, no da?"

"In the gardens! I was playing with my ball when I saw it." Boushin said.

"Did you see what it looked like, no da?"

"Not at first, because it was in the bushes. All I saw was it's eyes. I was gonna go get haha-ue, but then it came out of the bushes. It looked kawaii!" Boushin said happily.

Hishigatsu saw Tasuki twitch out of the corner of her eye and whispered to him, "Listen, you can tell him that it isn't manly to say 'kawaii' _after_, okay?"

"I know that!" Tasuki whispered back, and they turned their attention back to Boushin.

"It was a kawaii (Tasuki - (twitch)) bunny-rabbit! But it looked different, it was all dark black and it's eyes were all glowie and red."

Houki and Chichiri began panicking slightly. "You didn't touch it, did you, no da?"

"Iie, haha-ue told me to never touch wild animals." Boushin said proudly.

Houki and Chichiri both sighed in relief. "What happened then, no da?"

"Well, haha-ue called me inside, so I went in. But I don't know what happened to the bunny." Boushin said.

"Can you take Chichiri-ojii-san to where you saw the…bunny, no da?" Chichiri asked.

"Hai!" Boushin said happily. He ran off towards the garden with Chichiri, Tasuki, Sakura, Hishigatsu, and Houki following close behind.

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(_At The Gardens…_)

Boushin led the group to a fairly big bush. "Here's where I saw it."

"What do you think, Chichiri-san?" Sakura quietly asked.

"It's definitely a youkai, and I'm assuming that either it changed it's shape to seem like something harmless, or maybe it's just a rabbit that's been possessed by a youkai." Chichiri said.

"Either that, or Tenkou's got an odd taste in bad guys. What's next, a little pink pony?" Sakura said, snickering.

Chichiri sighed. "I know Tenkou's deranged, but I'm sure he's not _that_ deranged, no da." he said, but he couldn't help crack a smile at the thought.

But then, something caught his attention. A pair of glowing red eyes in the bush, just like Boushin had said. He turned to Sakura and whispered instructions to her. "Sakura-san, I'm going to need you to try and hold a barrier around Houki-sama and Boushin-sama, just stand by them and picture a barrier around the three of you in your mind, then concentrate your ki on making it. I'm sure you can do it Sakura-san, training or not. I just need you to hold it for a few minutes at most, understand?"

"Hai. Does the youkai look strong?" Sakura asked quietly.

"Iie, demo, we can't be too careful." Chichiri whispered. Sakura nodded and stepped back so that she was in front of Houki and Boushin. She did as Chichiri said and soon a red barrier surrounded the three of them.

Chichiri brought his hands to his prayer beads and muttered a quick spell. He stretched his shakujou outward and shot a ki blast at the youkai hiding in the bushes. The youkai jumped out of the bushes to avoid the attack, but was his with a quick "Rekka Shinen!" from Tasuki and a blast of orange energy from Hishigatsu.

The youkai let out a small, twisted shriek before being reduced to ashes. Sakura slowly let down the barrier.

"Is it dead?" Sakura asked.

Chichiri closed his eyes slowly and then opened them a few seconds later. "Hai, I can't feel any trace of it's ki, no da."

"Arigatou Chichiri-san-tachi." Houki said. "Now why don't we go back inside and finish our meal?"

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(_Two Hours Later…_)

"Man, I'm stuffed!" Hishigatsu said, plopping down on Sakura's bed and sighing contently.

"Yeah, me too. Maybe we should wait 'till tomorrow to do our 'anime night', okay?" Sakura asked.

"Fine with me, I'm beat! Oyasumi Sakura-chan!" ((IP - So much for them having room for candy no matter what (n.n")))

"Oyasumi Hi-chan."

With that, Hishigatsu walked out of Sakura's room and Sakura sighed. _Hm, I'm not really tired. What should I do now?_

She looked outside and saw that the sun had already set, and the sky was lit up with stars. "Kirei…"

"It is, isn't it, no da."

Sakura jumped slightly and turned around.

"Gomen nasai Sakura-san, no da. I was just walking by and your door was open, and, anou…I was wondering…if maybe y-you'd like to take a walk with me in the gardens…I mean, if you don't mind…daa…" Chichiri flushed, embarrassed by his sudden lack of confidence. _We're just going for a nice, _FRIENDLY_ walk in the garden, no da…nothing more…so why am I so nervous?! Maybe it's just that I've never been alone with a woman before, but no, that's not true, I've been alone with Kouran, and with Miaka, but the only time I felt this nervous was whenever I…daa, I can't think like that, no da! Besides, I doubt she'd like me that way if she knew…_

Meanwhile, Sakura's mind was also racing. _Oh my gosh, did he really just ask me to take a walk with him?! Romantic or not, this has to be the best moment of my entire life!! _(.)_ And he looked so kawaii when he was stuttering like that! _(n.n)_ Hard to believe he's 28 years old…GAH, HE'S NINE YEARS OLDER THAN ME?! _(TT.TT)_ Life is cruel, but apparently not __**too**__ cruel, considering that Chichiri's acting really nice to me, __**and**__ he's gonna go with me to the gardens! Whoops, would be nice to TELL him that though!_

"Anou…Chichiri-san?"

"Hai, no da?"

"I'd love to take a walk with you." Sakura said. She smiled when she saw his relieved look. She put on her shoes and they walked out of Sakura's room, and down to the gardens.

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(_Gardens, A Few Minutes Later_)

"Sugoi, the stars are even _more_ kirei out here!" Sakura exclaimed breathlessly.

"Not to be rude or anything, demo, don't you have any stars in your world, no da?" Chichiri asked.

"Hai, but we might as well not have any, with all of the light pollution." Sakura said.

"Light pollution, no da?"

"Oh, right, you wouldn't know about that would you." Sakura said. "Well, in my world and in the miko's world as well, we found a way to make artificial light. But the problem is, since everyone uses their lights at night, the sky becomes too bright and you can't see any stars. That's what we call 'light pollution'."

"Wow, no da. No wonder you enjoy the stars so much, no da, this must be a treat for you." Chichiri said.

"Hai, it is." Sakura said. Then with a blush, she added, "It's also a treat to be spending such a great night with such a great friend."

Chichiri smiled and said, "Arigatou, and it's a treat to receive such a complement."

Then the two of them sat down and chatted the night away, fully breaking all the tension between them.

"One more thing Chichiri-san."

"Hai, no da?"

"I'd prefer if you didn't use 'san' with my name."

"Okay, on one condition, no da."

"Hai?"

"I want you to stop being so formal with me as well, no da."

"Deal!"

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IP - So, Chichiri and Sakura's relationship is ever-slowly developing! (n.n) But what of Tasuki and Hishigatsu?

Tasuki - (blushing) Whaddya mean 'what of Tasuki and Hishigatsu'?! There's nothin' goin' on between us!

Hishigatsu - (sad) There isn't? (trying to act tough) I mean, of COURSE there isn't! Why would I want to do anything with that stupid, overdressed, flighty, empty-headed jerk?! (blushing nonetheless)

IP - Whatever you say! (n.n) Please R&R!


	11. Feuds and Feelings Part 1

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - HELLO CLEVELAND!! (D)

Chichiri - Anou…who's Cleveland, no da?

IP - (n.n") Nevermind. Anyway, we haven't had a fun disclaimer in a while, ne? So I decided to start them back up! (n.n)

Everyone - (TT.TT)

IP - (clears throat angrily) a-HEM!

Everyone - Uh, hoo…ray?

IP - (glare) ANYWAY…we just had our spring concert in school not too long ago (well, when I wrote this, anyway (sweatdrop); it's been over two years since then (bigger sweatdrop)), and I promised Piksy that if it went good, I'd make it a disclaimer.

Piksy - And true to her word, we did spectacular, so now the FY gang + the rest of us disclaimer people are gonna put on a concert of our own, playing all of the songs that our band played!

AS - (snickers) And seeing as we had three songs that had singing, and one of those songs had _dancing_ as well, this should prove to be entertaining. (evil grin)

IP - Oi AS, there're only two singing-pieces we're doing. The third one doesn't involve the whole band, so we're not gonna do it.

Piksy - Aw man, I _liked_ that one! (starts whining)

WD (Whitedragon, if you don't remember (n.n)) - (bonks Piksy on the head) God Piksy, do you _ever_ shut up?!

Piksy - Nope! (D)

WD - (-.-)

IP - Anyway, getting back on track here…this disclaimer, we're deciding on instruments, then while you read the chappie, everyone'll be practicing and trying to get the songs down, and then next disclaimer will probably be final preparations, then the concert will be the following disclaimer. Any questions?

Everyone - Uhh…

IP - Good! (n.n)

Everyone - (sweatdrop)

IP - (claps hands together) Let's get started, shall we? First order of business--figuring out who'll play what!

Crystal - Well, you and Piksy play flute, so I doubt that's changing, AS and WD play clarinet…

IP - …Amiboshi obviously plays the flute as well, and you're gonna be conductor. Which leaves all of the Suzaku seishi, Miaka, Yui, Nakago, Soi, Suboshi, Tomo, Sakura, and Hishigatsu.

Crystal - You have anything in mind for them?

IP - Well…Chichiri should be on piano definitely…

Chichiri - Da? What's a p-yah-no, no da?

IP - (points to piano in the corner)

Chichiri - Ooh! No da! (runs over to piano) (starts pressing random keys and whenever a sound comes out, he jumps)

Crystal - (sweatdrop) You _sure_ that's a good idea?

IP - (nods) Positive. Once his playful (and curious) side wears off, you'll see. Now, who's next?

Tasuki - I want somethin' loud!

IP & Crystal - Drums. (point to drums)

Tasuki - How do I play 'em?

IP - You just bang on 'em with sticks. Simple, ne?

Tasuki - Alright! Ya actually did somethin' _nice_ fer me fer once! (runs over to the drums)

Nakago - What do I play?

Crystal - Definitely a guitar, but which one?

IP - Well…I think that he should play bass guitar, and Soi should play electric guitar.

Soi - So I'll get to be with Nakago-sama?

IP - Yep! (n.n)

Crystal - Okay, who's next?

Miaka - I'm playing whatever Taka's playing!

Taka - Would saxophone be too hard for you?

Miaka - Of course not, my koibito!

Taka - Oh Miaka!

Miaka - Oh Taka!

Everyone - OH SHUT UP (NO DA)!

IP - ANYway, what about the rest of you?

Suboshi - Can I play flute with aniki?

IP - Sorry Suboshi. I was gonna put you on trumpet, but you can sit right behind Amiboshi if you want.

Suboshi - (sigh) Fine.

Crystal - How about his majesty?

Hotohori - I'm not sure…I'd enjoy something different though, so what would you recommend for me?

IP - How about trumpet? Loud, important, the center of the band…

Hotohori - I suppose that's alright…although I shall ignore what was implied with the loud part (glare)

AS - I want Nuriko to play clarinet with me!

Nuriko - (n.n) I'd be happy to, AS-chan!

Crystal - Now, for Mits, I was thinking something quiet…

IP - NO! I REFUSE TO HAVE THAT MAN BE ANY MORE QUIET THAN HE ALREADY IS! HE'S GONNA PLAY _**TRUMPET**_ AND THAT'S FINAL!!

Everyone - (O.O")

Mitsukake - Might as well. Might be nice to be _noticed_ for once. (-.-)

IP - Good! (n.n) Now, for Chiriko, I say clarinet.

Crystal - Sounds good.

IP - Now we have Yui, Tomo, Sakura, and Hishigatsu left.

Crystal - Yui and Tomo get flute, and Sakura and Hishigatsu sing.

Sakura and Hishigatsu - Nani?!

Crystal - Oh come on, you guys'll be great!

IP - Fine, the homo can play flute as long as he stays clear of me. He goes in the middle of Amiboshi and Yui, got it?

Tomo - Why is it that no one likes me?

IP - Because you're weird…

Piksy - …you're gay…

WD - …and for kami's sake, you talk to a frickin' _clam!!_

Tomo - It's a SHELL! And it's name is Shen!

WD - Okay, now it's people like this that make me dislike FY. (-.-)

IP - Can we PLEASE focus?! We'll start practicing while the chappie goes on, and continue with practice next disclaimer.

Tasuki - I don't need t' practice! Watch!

IP - NO TASUKI NOT THAT--

(BANG RIP THUD CRASH)

IP - …hard. (-.-) (looks at pile that used to be a drum set) (sweatdrop) ChichiRIIIIIIII! HELP!!

Chichiri - (sigh) IP-san doesn't own anything made by Yuu Watase-sama, now enjoy the chapter, na no da. (runs off to help fix the drum set)

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

_**speech**_ speech inside the character's head that's not their own (NOT TELEPATHY)

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 11 - Feuds and Feelings **Part 1: Realizing is Only Half the Job**

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(_The Next Day…_)

Sakura rolled over in her sleep and slowly opened her eyes. A smile (along with a blush) crossed her face at the memory of last night. _Oh my god, I can't believe that happened! I can finally call him Chiri-kun!! Well, maybe not __**Chiri**__-kun, but I can call him __**Chi**__chiri-kun. Good enough! _(n.n)_ I'm glad that we're getting to be better friends. But…friends? Why does that feel so weird, like…like it's an understatement or something. No, even if I __**do**__ feel like that, which I'm __**POSITIVE**__ I don't, it's not like he'd feel that way about me. That, and the fact that I barely deserve such good friends, let alone something __**more**__. Anyway, I should focus on giving Tasuki and Hishigatsu's relationship a little, all right, a __**big**__ push. Too bad we didn't find Nuriko yet, I'm sure he'd love doing something like this. Well, I'll just have to work with Chichiri-kun._

She climbed out of bed, rubbed her eyes sleepily, and stretched a bit. She slowly got dressed, brushed out her hair (with a brush left for her in the room via Houki), put on her shoes, and walked out of her room. _I'm sure Chichiri-kun is up by now, but I doubt he's in his room. Might as well check though._

She walked up to his door and knocked softly. When there was no answer, she opened the door a crack and looked inside. Just as she'd thought, he wasn't in his room. She closed the door and headed off in the direction she remembered them going in when they headed to the gardens. _If I know the monk as well as I think I do, he's either meditating or fishing. Most likely meditating, because it's still early._

She slowly continued on to the gardens.

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(_Gardens_)

Chichiri sat on the ground at the edge of the pond, his mask and kesa on the ground next to him, his eye closed. He focused on clearing his thoughts, but found for some reason that he couldn't.

_Why do I keep thinking about her?! Why can't I even have a few minutes' peace without her face appearing in my head or her voice breaking through my thoughts? It's like…iie!_

_**Oh come now, do you really believe you're convincing yourself?**_

_Iie, I don't need convincing. I loved_--_**love**__ Kouran, and I always will! I will never betray Kouran by loving another!_

_**But really, would she think of it as betrayal? I think that she'd be HAPPY for you, that you finally moved on.**_

_IIE, URUSAI! I __**DID**__ MOVE ON!_

_**Oh really? Is that why you just snapped like that?**_

_Demo, if I didn't move on, then was that fight with Hikou all for nothing?!_

The voice sighed._** Sometimes it's hard to believe we're one of the same. Iie, your fight with Hikou wasn't for nothing. You settled your past with HIM. But I doubt Kouran is going to come back to life for you to settle things with HER, so you just have to accept that she's dead, ACCEPT THAT THERE WASN'T ANYTHING YOU COULD'VE DONE ABOUT THAT, and move on.**_

Chichiri sat in silence for a while, trying to figure out something to say in his defense, when suddenly…

"HI CHICHIRI-KUN!"

"DA?!"

(splash)

"Oops. Gomen nasai Chichiri-kun." Sakura said, bending over the pond and looking at the now-soaked Chichiri with a small sweatdrop running down the side of her head. Despite her apology, she had a too-innocent smile on her face.

Chichiri couldn't help being overjoyed at seeing Sakura, and he felt that it wasn't because she interrupted his "conversation" with his "inner self", a conversation that he happened to magically forget was started by the thought of Sakura in the first place. He playfully glared at her. "_Sure_ you are, no da." he pushed his bangs from his face and pouted. "Now I'm all wet, na no da!"

Sakura took off her socks and shoes, sat down at the edge of the pond, and put her feet in, sitting close enough to the pond so that the water went up to her knees but at the same time didn't reach her jean shorts. "I don't know what you're complaining about. The water's nice and cool, and it's really hot out. I wish I had my swimsuit with me, then I'd go in for a dip."

"Swimsuit, no da?"

"Oh, right, guess you don't have those here. It's basically a special type of clothing that you wear to go swimming." she explained. "But anyway, I didn't come here to scare you into the pond. I came here to ask you to help me with something."

"Depends on what it is, na no da." Chichiri said, looking at her suspiciously.

"How would'ja like to do a little matchmaking?"

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(_Meanwhile…_)

Hishigatsu rolled over in bed and slowly opened her eyes, which promptly shut when the bright sun hit them. "Damn sun…" she muttered, as she pulled herself out of bed.

She found a brush on the dresser (once again via Houki) and sleepily brushed out her hair. Once she got most of the knots out, she started getting dressed into the clothes that Sakura let her borrow. When she put on her shirt, she frowned and sighed. _A bit too loose up top, a bit too tight on the bottom. Figures. No wonder Tasuki doesn't see anything in me._

She put on her shoes and walked out the door in a daze due to not being fully awake yet. She was surprised when she found herself standing in front of Tasuki's room. _That's weird…I wonder why I came here…Oh well, might as well see if he's up._

She opened the door and peeked inside. She stifled a laugh when she saw Tasuki's position. His head was hanging off of the bed, all of the pillows and blankets were thrown everywhere, one leg was at the head of the bed, the other was somehow being balanced on the wall, one arm was hanging off of the bed, and his other arm was on his stomach. And to top it off, he was snoring so loud that Hishigatsu realized that she underestimated the insulation in the palace.

She shook her head and was about to leave when she saw him open his eyes. She smiled and walked into his room. "Ohayo hime!" she chirped sarcastically. "Sleep well?"

"Urusai baka." Tasuki muttered darkly. He picked up a nearby pillow and attempted to throw it at her, but between him being so tired, and him being upside-down, he missed by a long shot.

"Nice aim." Hishigatsu said sarcastically. "That is, if you were trying to hit the window."

"Urusai." Tasuki muttered. "What th' hell're ya doin' here anyway?"

"Well, I was bored and I wanted to spend some time with you." Hishigatsu said.

"Why don't'cha go bother Ch'chiri or Sakura-san?" Tasuki asked.

"Well, I, uh, I couldn't find them." she lied.

Tasuki sighed. "Fine, just get out and lemme get dressed. We can go fer a walk 'r somethin'." he said, before raising his eyebrows in surprise. _Did I just say that?!_

_Oh my god, is he serious?! Awesome!_ Hishigatsu thought happily. "Okay!"

She smiled and left the room, and Tasuki couldn't stop himself from smiling back. He started getting dressed. _I wonder why I agreed t' go walk with 'er. Well, she was bored, so as 'er friend, I guess I c'n just go spend time with 'er._

He finished getting dressed and left his room to find Hishigatsu leaning against the wall, waiting for him. The two of them walked down the hall, side by side, not aware of the two pairs of eyes watching them.

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"Are you sure it was a good idea to manipulate him like that, no da?"

"Yep. And besides, he didn't turn her down when you released him, did he?" Sakura said in a matter-of-fact sort of tone. "That proves that he _does_ like her, even if he doesn't realize it yet."

"But then how come they both argue all the time, no da?"

"Because they're both stubborn, persistent, and refuse to back down from a fight. So of course they'd continue fighting with each other, feelings or not. But what I'm afraid of is that their arguing will interfere with their relationship, and maybe cause a misunderstanding between them."

"Well, time will tell, no da."

"Oh, you're no fun!" Sakura stuck her tongue out at him. "Don't you wanna go spy on them at least?"

"Iie, no da. The least we can do is give them some privacy na no da." Chichiri said. But he blushed when he realized what he said and what it implied. He went chibi and frantically flailed his arms. "I didn't mean it like that, no da! It just came out wrong, na no da!"

Sakura shook her head and rolled her eyes. "Suuuure you didn't, hentai. 'Give them some privacy', huh? Seems like you're thinking a bit farther along then I am!"

"Would I ever say something like that and mean it, no da?" Chichiri asked, still chibi.

"Hmm…" Sakura said, pretending to think. Chichiri stuck his tongue out at her.

"Meanie no da!" Chichiri said, pretending to be hurt. "And I thought you were my friend no da!"

"I _am_ your friend! And you're _my_ friend! That's why you're coming with me to go have fun spying on Hi-chan and Tasuki-kun!" Sakura exclaimed. Then before Chichiri could protest, Sakura bent down, picked him up, and ran off in the direction that Hishigatsu and Tasuki headed in.

"I don't wanna go, no da! Lemme go! LEMMEGOLEMMEGOLEMMEGOLEMMEGOLEMMEGOLEMMEGO!!" Chichiri exclaimed, his legs flailing.

"Itai! Do you _want_ me to drop you?!" Sakura exclaimed, getting hurt from both Chichiri's loud whining and his flailing legs.

"Well, it's either that or being on the receiving end of Tasuki-kun's tessen, na no da!" Chichiri countered.

"Hmm, sounds like fun!" Sakura said sarcastically. _I know that he wants to go, because if he didn't, he could've gone back to his normal size or teleported or something. He just enjoys the attention._

"You're gonna get us both killed, no da!" Chichiri exclaimed while trying to wriggle out of Sakura's grasp.

"Shh, I think I see them!" Sakura said. She felt Chichiri slipping from her grasp and lifted him back up. "Nuh-uh, you're not getting away!"

"Daa, fine. But if we get caught, it's every person for themselves, no da." Chichiri said, stopping his struggling.

"Deal. Now, lets move in a bit closer." Sakura said. She crept forward into the field outside the palace and hid behind a tree. She peered around and once she saw Hishigatsu and Tasuki turn their backs towards her, she crept even closer to them. Once again she hid behind a tree, this time moving Chichiri enough so that he could watch too. They were now within earshot, but instead of the bickering that Chichiri and Sakura were expecting, there was a normal conversation being held.

"So…I've always wondered…why did you become a bandit?" Hishigatsu asked. She was sitting down next to Tasuki under the shade of a tree. Of course, she already knew the story of how he became a bandit and why, but she figured that maybe this would help them get a bit closer.

"Well, ya see, 'kaa-san neva wanted me t' become a seishi, even though it was my fate 'n all that. So she tried at make me into th' biggest pansy ev'r, so I wouldn' leave 'er. But I finally got a bit o' sense and ran away t' become th' exact opposite of a pansy, which I figgered was a bandit. I vowed t' always do th' opposite of what 'kaa-san wanted me t' do."

"Was that the reason that you decided to join up with Miaka-san-tachi?" Hishigatsu asked. "I mean, I know that Kouji-san told you something when Miaka-san-tachi left, but what was it?"

"He jus' reminded me of my promise to th' ol' leader and my vow, which is what convinced me t' join up with th' seishi." Tasuki said.

"You're so cool, I mean, how you can just disobey your parents like that." Hishigatsu said. "My parents are way too overprotective of me too, yet they let my brother go out wherever and whenever he wants!"

"Tch. That's parents fer ya. They don't make no sense whatsoever." Tasuki said, rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, the only thing worse than parents is siblings." Hishigatsu said.

"Hell yeah! My damn sistas were _always_ tryin' stuff on me! They damn near _killed_ me millions o' times!" Tasuki exclaimed.

They continued talking about how much they hated their families for a few minutes.

Sakura (who was still watching from behind a tree with Chichiri) sighed and turned her head. Chichiri gave her a curious look as she put him down and said quietly, "You can stay if you want." Then she ran off.

Chichiri went back to his normal size and stared in the direction that Sakura ran off in. "Sakura-chan…?"

His curiosity getting the better of him (as usual), he followed her. Unfortunately, they both left at a bad moment.

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"Ugh! You're such an idiot!"

"Yeah? Like yer any better ya baka onna?!"

"Do you really hate women that much?!"

"Hell yeah! I hate 'em all! Th' only woman I liked was Mi-chan! And you're the _last_ woman I'd like!"

"Grr…you jerk!! I HATE YOU!!" Hishigatsu exclaimed, and she stormed off, leaving behind a shocked Tasuki.

_S-She…hates me? I don' get it. Why did those three words hurt so much? It's not like I…iie! Iie! I said that I'd neva like wimmen! Demo…I also said that I'd only hate who I hate. I'm so confused! I dunno if I hate 'er or not! Sometimes I feel so angry around 'er, but sometimes, like before we started t' argue, I feel so happy 'round 'er. My heart feels all light, almost like with Mi-chan, 'cept… stronger…Ah shit, I don't know how it happened, an' I don't know when…but I think…I'm fallin'…in love… with…__**her**__…_

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(_Meanwhile…_)

"Sakura-chan, no da!"

Chichiri quickly caught up with Sakura, who turned around in surprise.

"I thought you stayed." she said.

"I wanted to find out why you ran off, no da." Chichiri said.

"It's nothing. I just got bored, that's all." she lied.

"Iie, I can tell that you're lying, no da. And I saw that you looked away when they were talking about their families…" Chichiri said.

"So you noticed, huh? Well, it's nothing for you to worry about." Sakura said.

"Are you sure, no da?"

"Positive."

"Well…alright, no da. But if you ever want to talk, I'll be willing to listen, no da."

"Arigatou Chichiri-kun. I appreciate it." Sakura said, smiling softly.

"We should go back inside. It's almost time for lunch, no da." Chichiri said, and the two of them went back into the palace.

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(_Meanwhile, a few meters away from where Tasuki was…_)

"UGH! I CAN'T BELIEVE THE NERVE OF THAT GUY!!" Hishigatsu exclaimed, still storming down the path. But she slowed her pace as she began to get tired. "Why…I just wanna get along with him…I wanna be able to love him…but every time I try to just hold a normal conversation with him, it turns into an argument…maybe we weren't meant to be together…it's enough that he hates me, but on top of that now he thinks that _I_ hate _him_! I don't know what to do…"

Tears streaming down her face, she slowly trudged back to the palace.

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Piksy - (sniff) WHYYYYYY?!

IP - Why what?

Piksy - How could you make Tasuki and Hishigatsu fight like that?! (sniff)

IP - I would've thought that you'd be _happy_ they were fighting.

Piksy - Well, I just pretend that Hishigatsu is me! (n.n)

IP - (sweatdrop)

(BANG CRASH RIP THUD)

Tasuki - (behind the curtain on the stage) WASN'T ME!

IP - (bigger sweatdrop) Please R&R, before I have to spend all of my money on multiple drum sets. (-.-)


	12. Feuds and Feelings Part 2

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Hey there you wonderful audience! I don't own FY and all it's wonderful characters (unfortunately) but I can force them to learn to play instruments! (n.n)

Tasuki - (him and Crystal are working on a basic drum beat) Like this? (starts banging out a semi-decent beat)

Crystal - Good, good, you're doing fine…(sweatdrop)

Tasuki - Admit it! Yer lyin'! ( ( )

Crystal - W-Why would you say that?

Tasuki - (points to Chichiri, who's playing some Mozart piece perfectly) And… (points to Nakago and Soi who are busy playing some bass/electric guitar duet perfectly) and… (points to Mitsukake who's playing some sort of loud piece very enthusiastically and perfectly) Goddammit, even Mi-chan and that baka Obake-chan (Tamahome/Taka to anyone who doesn't know) are playin' better'n me! (points to said two as they play a duet love song with minor mistakes)

Crystal - Well then, why not try concentrating on your own music instead of everyone else's?

Tasuki - When ya assigned me t' drums, ya made it sound so frickin' _easy!_

Hishigatsu - Aw, c'mon Tas-chan, lighten up. I'm sure you'll get it! (n.n)

(coughcougheventuallycough)

Tasuki - (sends her a playful glare) Yea, but it's not my drummin' we're worried 'bout, it's that horrible screatchin' ya call singin' that's got us pluggin' our ears.

Hishigatsu - (gives him the one finger salute (if ya know what I mean (n.n))) (grumbles) And to think, I was trying to help him out…

IP - (sigh) Okay people, let's settle down--

Piksy - Hey! Wait! I wanna ask something!

IP - (bigger sigh) What is it Ms. Energizer Bunny?

Piksy - Can we do karaoke instead?! I don't wanna play our stupid songs anymore! I wanted to at first, but our stupid band teacher is still making us play the songs even though the concert is over, so now I'm sick of them! ((IP - Yes, this was written after the concert (still more than two years ago) too (XP) I do the disclaimers before the actual chapters, incase you didn't figure it out by now (sweatdrop))) Besides, I wanna hear Tasuki sing!

IP - Hmm…(sees most seishi frantically shaking their heads and mouthing 'no' with wide eyes on account of them not wanting to sing lest they be attacked by rabid fangirls) (smirks)…hey Piksy, your genius is showing! (n.n)

Seishi previously stated - (glare)

Piksy - (O.O) Where?! (starts covering herself)

Everyone - (sweatdrop)

Chichiri - Daa, you're probably gonna need piano for whichever song I have to sing so I guess I won't be singing then, no da! (laughs nervously)

Tasuki - (catches on) Yea, and you'll need drums fer mine (obviously) so I guess I can't sing either!

Nakago - And I'm sure there'll be guitars needed in both mine and Soi's songs at some point, so I guess we can't sing either!

Soi - Hai! What Nakago-sama said!

IP - Nice try you guys, but we have a little something called 'recorded music' nowadays. Ever heard of it?

Seishi who tried to make excuses - Damn (no da).

IP - Okay, since you wise guys, erm, and girls, tried to weasel your way out of singing, you get to sing first! Starting with Chichiri! (n.n)

Chichiri - I THOUGHT I WAS YOUR FAVORITE BISHIE, NA NO DA!! (TT.TT)

IP - Oh what, so _now_ that counts for something? Besides, what are you afraid of?

Chichiri - Anou, would the rabid fangirls that'll probably attack me after I sing the FIRST LINE BE A GOOD ENOUGH ANSWER FOR YOU, NA NO DA?!

IP - Yeesh, don't get your kesa in a bundle Chichiri, I'll make sure to have them wait patiently until you finish your song before letting them attack you! (n.n)

Chichiri - (glare) (pouts while muttering a few very un-monkly words)

Sakura - Anou, if they're gonna be singing, then what are me and Hi-chan gonna do?

IP - You guys'll be singing too! It's karaoke after all! (D)

Hishigatsu - (sweatdrop) Someone wanna tell me why she's so enthusiastic about this?

Chichiri - It's 'cuz she gets to torture m--us, no da. ( ( )

Tasuki - Well, it ain't so bad. We get t' see Ch'chiri sing afta all! (smirk)

Chichiri - What is it with you guys and wanting to hear me sing, na no da?!

IP - It's because you don't seem like the type to sing (n.n)

Crystal - (sigh) Focus people! We have one teensy problem that you kinda overlooked, IP.

IP - What's that?

Crystal - WE CAN'T HAVE 18 PEOPLE SINGING!! ARE YOU CRAZY?!

IP - Nope! (D)

Crystal - (huge sweatdrop) Well I beg to differ. (-.-)

Chichiri - Fine, lets just get this over with, no da. ( ( ) But, anou, what _exactly_ are we gonna be singing, na no da?

IP - You'll see next disclaimer! (D) Speaking of disclaimers, we'll move over the concert-turned-karaoke-night one disclaimer, so next disclaimer you'll see what songs they're gonna be singing. But for now, enjoy the chapter! (n.n)

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

_**speech**_ speech inside the character's head that's not their own (NOT TELEPATHY)

… telepathy  
(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 11 - Feuds and Feelings **Part 2: A Kiss To Fix**

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(_At the Palace_)

"Oh my god, what happened?! Daijoubu ka?!" Sakura exclaimed, running up to Hishigatsu.

"T-Tasuki…" she whispered, before hurling herself into Sakura's arms and sobbing.

"Hi-chan, what happened?" Sakura asked again.

"H-He…hates me…I know it…" Hishigatsu said in between sobs.

"Hi-chan…" Sakura said, hugging her back. "Don't worry, I'm sure he doesn't hate you."

"Y-Yes he does! And now he thinks I hate him too!" Hishigatsu exclaimed.

"I'm sure he knows you don't hate him, and I'm sure he doesn't hate you either. He probably just wasn't thinking, that's all." Sakura said slowly, while looking at Chichiri over Hishigatsu's shoulder. GET THAT BAKA HERE RIGHT NOW!!

DAA! Itai, no da! No need to yell! Chichiri teleported away while Sakura comforted Hishigatsu as best as she could. _Jeez, it must have been one big fight for Hi-chan to be this upset…_

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(_Field just outside the Palace_)

Tasuki was pacing back and forth in the same spot he was when Hishigatsu was there. _Oh Suzaku, what did I do?! I mighta just ruined our relationship before it even began! How do I tell 'er I'm sorry, and more importantly, how do I tell 'er that I just realized how much she really means to me…?_

But he was startled out of his thoughts by a certain blue-haired monk popping up right in front of him.

"Goddammit Chiri, how many times 'ave I told'ja not t' do that!!" Tasuki exclaimed, finally regaining his voice after the first few seconds of initial shock.

"Gomen Tasuki-kun, but Sakura-chan wanted me to come get you right away, no da. She's really mad at you, na no da." Chichiri said. Then he frowned and continued. "I won't say that I'm mad at you too, but I am a bit disappointed in you, no da."

_Sakura-__**chan**__?_ Tasuki thought, but shook it off. "Whaddya talkin' about?"

Chichiri sighed. "I mean that we're upset with you for making Hi-chan cry like that." he said, and Tasuki fell to his knees while sighing frustratedly.

"Ah shit." he said, moving into a sitting position.

"Daijoubu ka?" Chichiri asked, taking his mask off and sitting down next to Tasuki.

"I don' know what t' do…" Tasuki said. "I-I think I'm in love with 'er, but…"

Chichiri didn't need an explanation to figure out the 'her' he was talking about. "But?" he asked, picking up where Tasuki trailed off.

"But I don' know how t' tell 'er, or if she even loves me back…"

Tasuki shut his eyes, but opened them when he felt a hand rest on his shoulder. He looked into Chichiri's single amber eye, an eye that held tales of love gained and lost.

"Tasuki-kun, do you love Hi-chan?" Chichiri asked, his gaze never wavering.

"Yes." He answered strongly.

"So what do you want to do? Do you want to confess to her or keep running and hiding?"

"I'm a bandit! An' a bandit don' run away _or_ hide!" Tasuki said proudly, standing up. Then he sweatdropped and added, "Well, technically they do, but you get the point!"

Chichiri smiled and stood up as well. "Good." He put his mask back on and continued in his higher-pitched voice. "Now let's get back before Sakura-chan kills us both, no da!"

Chichiri turned around to leave when Tasuki spoke up. "Oi, Ch'chiri."

Chichiri turned back around. "Hai, no da?"

"…Arigatou." he said.

"Do itashimashite." Chichiri said. "Now, would you like to get back the long way or the short way?" he waved his kasa to Tasuki's mock-horror.

"Nuh-uh, no way I'm takin' a trip through that thing again! I think th' palace has seen enough've yer famous landing skills."

"Hey! I'm not _that_ bad, no da!"

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(_A Few Minutes Later; Palace_)

After surviving Sakura yelling at him endlessly for making her best friend cry, Tasuki was now making his way to Hishigatsu's room. _It's now 'r never._

He stopped outside Hishigatsu's room and reached out to knock on it when he stopped suddenly and pulled back. But then he gathered himself together and reached out more confidently. He knocked on the door and waited until he heard a quiet "Enter." before opening the door.

Hishigatsu, who was standing at her windowsill, turned around and faced Tasuki, and he mentally beat himself up when he saw her puffy red eyes and tear-stained face. "Hi-chan, daijoubu ka?"

_What's Tasuki doing here? And how come he's being so nice? I would've thought that he'd make fun of me for crying, like call me a crybaby or a wimp or something, but he isn't…_ "Hai, I'm fine, not like _you_ care." she said harshly, drying her tear-soaked face with her sleeve and glaring at him.

He visibly winced and immediately Hishigatsu realized that he didn't come here to fight. _But if he didn't come here to fight, then why…_

Tasuki sighed. "Look Hi-chan, I came here t' apologize fer everythin'. I don' hate ya, an'…an' I really hope ya don' hate me neither." the last part came out as a whisper, but Hishigatsu caught it loud and clear.

"Tasuki…" she said. "Iie, I don't hate you. I was worried that _you_ hated _me_."

Tasuki shook his head and smiled, a smile that made Hishigatsu want to melt in her spot. "I don' hate ya, I coul' _never_ hate ya. Actually, I…"

"You what?" she asked.

Tasuki tried to get it out, but the words wouldn't come. Finally he gave up and decided to try a different approach. He walked up to her, cupped her face in his hands, and slowly moved his lips towards hers, much to Hishigatsu's shock and pleasure.

_Oh my god, he isn't…he isn't…__**he is**__!!_

Tasuki's lips softly touched Hishigatsu's, a kiss so tender yet filled with so much passion that Hishigatsu almost forgot to kiss back because of the shock and pure bliss it filled her with.

Tasuki was about to pull back in disappointment and apologize when Hishigatsu kissed him back, her kiss equally as passionate but at the same time telling him that he didn't have to hold back. He pressed back, this time with more force than the last, removing his hands from her face and instead wrapping one arm around her waist and the other across her shoulders and behind her neck, pulling her body against his, and in response she wrapped her arms around his neck. They both closed their eyes in pleasure, taking in everything about the person that they were now in such close contact with.

Unfortunately, they had to break the kiss to take a breath. They parted their lips, but kept their faces close, enjoying everything about each other.

"Hishigatsu…" Tasuki said, and Hishigatsu could feel his breath on her lips, tempting her to push back against them.

"Hai?" she answered, moving her arms to encircle his waist, and Tasuki had the same reaction as she'd had, only he didn't resist it. He pushed his lips gently against hers, but he pulled away right afterwards, and said, "Aishiteru."

That word brought pure joy to Hishigatsu's ears as she leant her head against his chest, her eyes watering.

"Aw shit, what did I do now?!" Tasuki exclaimed, backing up a tiny bit to look down at Hishigatsu.

She looked up at him and smiled. "Tasuki no baka. I'm not crying because I'm sad, I'm crying because I'm so happy!" she unwrapped one arm from Tasuki's waist to wipe her eyes before continuing. "I love you too Tasuki."

They leant in for another kiss, this time neither of them holding back. Tasuki's hands moved up and down her body, managing to hit all the right spots, and Hishigatsu had to bite back a moan of pleasure, so that Tasuki wouldn't take that as a signal to move on to "step 2".

When Tasuki's hands ventured a little too low, she gave them a light smack. "Whoa tiger, hands off the merchandise!" she said playfully, and Tasuki pulled his hands away, not recognizing the phrase but getting the overall meaning.

"Fine fine, keep yer 'merchandise'." he said, smirking. "But'cha can't keep me away from it ferever ya know."

At this Hishigatsu blushed even more than she was already, and Tasuki laughed. She just stuck her tongue out at him. "And here I thought you loved me! Hmph!"

"Sorry, it's just…" he trailed off, and cupped her chin in his hand before continuing. "It's just ya look so cute when yer all flushed like that."

She smiled, and he grinned. "What'cha thinkin' 'bout now, hentai?"

"Hmm, oh, I was thinking that if this is your form of apologizing, then we should get into fights more often." she said with a flirtatious sort of smile.

"Heh heh, be careful, Suzaku-sama grants wishes ya know." he said. Then he grabbed her waist and pulled her back against him, resting his head on top of hers before moving his head to look into her eyes and continuing. "He granted my wish, after all."

"And believe it or not, he also granted mine." Hishigatsu said, and they leant in for one more kiss.

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(_A Few Minutes Later…_)

Hishigatsu and Tasuki came out of Hishigatsu's room, both of them smiling and Hishigatsu's face still showing faint traces of a blush. They went into the dining room and met up with Chichiri and Sakura, who stopped in the middle of their conversation to stare at the two.

"Well, seems that everything worked out well for you two." Sakura said, smiling.

"Oh, it worked out better than well." Hishigatsu said, smiling back.

Details? Sakura asked.

Later. Hishigatsu replied.

"Well, how many kids are you guys planning on having?" Sakura asked slyly, which caused Chichiri to choke on his water (that he had so unluckily chosen to take a sip of at that very moment) and Tasuki and Hishigatsu to trip and fall on top of each other in surprise. Meanwhile, Sakura was hysterically laughing. "Oh dear Suzaku, I was only _kidding!_"

"Yeah, well, coulda fooled us." Tasuki said as he helped Hishigatsu off of the floor. Both of them were beet red but still sharing a secret smile as if they were actually thinking over that question.

"Hey Chichiri-kun, you okay?" Sakura asked while giggling, looking at the poor monk who was still trying to catch his breath.

"Next time…" he said, taking a breath and glaring lightly at her. "…_warn me_ _before_ _I take a drink,_ no da!"

"Gomen." she said, her laughter dying down but a smile still on her face. Then she turned to Tasuki and Hishigatsu (who were now seated across from her and Chichiri) and asked, "What's with you two, you've been smiling nonstop since you came in here! You guys finally admit your undying love for eachother or something?"

"Hmm, something like that." Tasuki said, leaning down and giving Hishigatsu a kiss on the lips, much to the shock of a wide-eyed Sakura and a once-again choking Chichiri.

"**DIDN'T I SAY TO WARN ME BEFORE I TAKE A DRINK, NO DA?!**" Chichiri exclaimed once he regained his breath.

Sakura, Hishigatsu and Tasuki just laughed.

Chichiri sighed. "You people are going to be the death of me, no da." he said, shaking his head but smiling nonetheless.

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IP - So they _finally_ get to kiss! (Now to wait another twenty or so chappies before making Chichiri even _think_ of kissing (sweatdrop) I love the monk and all, but ya gotta admit he's a bit slow when it comes to romance (sweatdrop)) Hope that scene was at least decent, that was my first shot at one of those. (sweatdrop) (Wow, three sweatdrops in one statement…(sweatdrop) (looks back) Whoops, make that four (XP))

Tasuki - (flirtatiously smirking at Hishigatsu) I thought it was fine.

Hishigatsu - (matching his smirk with one of her own) Only fine? Maybe I should fix that...

Piksy - (grabs Tasuki, pulls him away) HANDS OFF SISTA! HE'S _MINE!_

Hishigatsu - Uhh, "sista"? (sweatdrop)

IP - Yeah, well, I think I'm gonna end this before a catfight erupts.

Tasuki - (He used his speed to escape Piksy) (points behind him) Too late.

(Hishigatsu and Piksy are currently in a catfight over Tasuki)

IP - (sweatdrop) (sigh) Please R&R. (U.U") ((A note to my wonderful audience (wow, that's _twice_ I've sucked up to--I mean, _flattered_, you guys! (n.n")) - I just put that end note in for fun, and the truth is that Piksy was bugging me to work on their kissing scene ever since I _started_ this story (sweatdrop) Her and AS figured everyone might wanna know that (n.n")))


	13. Miaka and Taka Return

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Hey, sorry for the wait on this chappie! Anyway, I don't own any Fushigi Yuugi characters, blah blah blah, now lets get this show on the road!

Chichiri - Anou, will we have to move if a carriage comes no da?

IP - (glare) Stop being a smart ass, Chiri-kun.

Chichiri - (n.n")

Miaka - On another note, why is it that me, Taka, and Yui-chan disappeared for, like, **6 CHAPTERS!!** (whine)

IP - Eheheh, you're coming back this chappie, don't worry! n.n"

Miaka - **YOU DON'T LIKE ME!!** (bawls)

IP - (sweatdrop) (mutters) And you're figuring this out _now?_

Nuriko - Anou, just one question. If we're gonna be singing, then how come you made us learn how to play instruments in the first place?

IP - Because I'm the authoress and what I say goes! (n.n)

Everyone - (sweatdrop)

IP - Okay, now here's the--

Piksy - Wait!

IP - (sigh) _Now_ what?

Piksy - I don't wanna sing any more.

IP - (growl) _And why not_, may I ask?

Piksy - (shrugs) The idea seemed fun at first, but now it doesn't.

All Seishi/Miko, Sakura, & Hishigatsu - (all sigh in relief)

IP - Grr, FINE! Just go on and read the chapter! (stomps off angrily muttering about needing new friends who don't change their minds every five minutes)

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

_**speech**_ speech inside the character's head that's not their own (NOT TELEPATHY)

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 12 - Miaka and Taka Return

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(_Later That Evening; Sakura's Room_)

"…and that's when we came in the dining room…err, or whatever they call it here." Hishigatsu finished. They were both in Sakura's room, Sakura laying down on her bed and Hishigatsu sitting on the edge of Sakura's bed. Hishigatsu was recapping everything that happened when Tasuki came into her room.

"Wow, so the legendary woman-hater finally found a woman to love, eh?" Sakura said, smiling. "I always knew you two'd end up together."

"You mean just like you and Chichiri?" Hishigatsu said more than asked, and Sakura shot straight up.

"N-Nani?!" she exclaimed, turning a shade of red that would make Suzaku's feathers look dull in comparison.

"Oh come on, you heard me Sakura-chan." Hishigatsu said.

Sakura sighed. "You know that he'd never want to be with anyone else besides Kouran, remember? Your lucky that Tasuki-kun never liked any girls besides Miaka-san, and she was taken by Tamahome-san--Taka-san, whatever--by the point Tasuki-kun realized that he liked her."

"What about that girl from Tasuki's novel, ReiRei?" Hishigatsu asked. "Was there something going on between the two of them?"

"ReiRei loved Tasuki, but I don't think that the feeling was mutual." Sakura said, having been the only one of the two to have read the novel.

"But anyway, back to the subject of you and Chichiri!" Hishigatsu said happily, but was silenced with a hand.

"Iie, onegai, just…don't. I don't like him that way, and he doesn't like me that way; we're **just friends**." Sakura said firmly. Then she lightened up and said, "Well, lets have our anime night before all of our chocolate melts and our drinks become too warm! Everything's been sitting in my bag for, like, two weeks already! I'm surprised that we don't have bags of hot fudge by now!"

"Ha ha, guess you're right." Hishigatsu said. They got up, dragged Sakura's bag to the edge of her bed, and started unpacking stuff.

"Snacks?" Sakura asked.

"Check!" Hishigatsu replied, taking out the last of the snacks.

"DVD player?"

"Check!" Hishigatsu handed over the DVD player.

"What do you wanna watch first?" Sakura asked.

"Inuyasha movie marathon?" Hishigatsu suggested.

"Sounds good!"

Hishigatsu grabbed the first Inuyasha movie and handed it to Sakura, who opened the case and popped it in.

Hishigatsu handed her movies 2, 3, and 4 and Sakura put them on the side for quick access. She scooted over on the bed to make room for Hishigatsu. Then the two of them laid down on top of the covers, the DVD player in between them, and Sakura pressed the play button. "Let the fun begin!"

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(_About Five Hours Later; Chichiri's Room_)

_The girls sure are quiet, no da. I should go check up on them._

Chichiri walked out of his room and up to Sakura's door. He knocked on it and said "Sakura-chan, it's Chichiri, no da."

"Oh, Chichiri-kun! Come in!" came Sakura's voice. Chichiri opened the door and sweatdropped at the sight. The girls by this point had finished the first three movies and were about the move onto the fourth, but you can just guess what that meant. Yes, about 1/3 of their large supply of candy and drinks were already gone. (sweatdrop) But not only that, they were surrounded by empty bags, wrappers, and an empty bottle of Hawaiian Punch.

"Eheheh…swedish fish?" Hishigatsu offered, holding out the bag and sweatdropping.

"It's candy, shaped like a fish! They're very sweet!" Sakura said happily.

"And delicious!" Hishigatsu added.

"Well, maybe I'll try one, no da…" Chichiri said hesitantly. After all, he couldn't be too careful after his first taste of other-worldly food. He took one of the fish and looked at it curiously. "It's very detailed for food, no da. And what does this writing say?"

"It's only the company logo." Hishigatsu said. "Anou, I mean it just says 'Swedish Fish'. Now stop asking questions and just eat it!"

Chichiri shrugged and popped the tiny swedish fish in his mouth, and smiled. "They're a bit tough to chew, but you're right, they do taste good, na no da!"

He then went chibi and sat on the edge of the bed, swinging his legs in the same fashion a little kid would. "So, what are you girls doing, no da?"

"Well, we're watching some movies…wanna watch with us?" Hishigatsu asked.

"Moo-vee, no da?" Chichiri asked, tilting his head cutely in confusion.

It took every ounce of strength Sakura had to answer his question without doing something fangirlish. "It's…anou…how to explain it…it's like a play in that the people seem almost life-like, only it's not real, you watch it on this screen…" she pointed to the DVD player's screen and then continued. "…and the sound comes from here." she pointed to the speakers on the DVD player.

"Right. So, wanna watch with us?" Hishigatsu asked again.

"Hmm…okay, no da!" Chichiri asked, moving in between the two girls and in front of the screen, while remaining chibi so as not to take up much room on the regular-sized bed.

Sakura reached over and pressed the play button, and Chichiri nearly jumped out of his skin when the picture on the screen changed to the menu screen and the loud opening music played. Sakura and Hishigatsu tried their best to control their laughter.

Chichiri blushed out of embarrassment. "It startled me, no da!"

"Don't worry Chichiri-kun, but make sure that you sit still during the movie okay? This DVD player cost me a lot of money and I don't need you breaking it, even by accident." Sakura said. She reached over to the DVD player and pressed a few buttons, to switch the language to Japanese--which they figured out that they magically learned upon arriving in the ShiJinTenChiSho, so they didn't need subtitles--and then she pressed play once more and the movie started up. Sakura lowered the volume a little bit, because the opening music tended to be loud for these movies, and then leaned back against the pillows as Hishigatsu poured them all drinks and opened up another bag of candy for later on in the movie…which would wind up being 5-10 minutes into the movie. (XP)

The movie went pretty fairly, with only minor interruptions from Chichiri to ask a question or who would occasionally forget that it wasn't real and would jump up to attack the screen, only to have Sakura or Hishigatsu restrain him without taking their eyes off the screen. There were also minor interruptions from Hishigatsu or Sakura asking to pass a snack or asking for a refill of a drink. Sakura hardly paid attention to the movie, not because she saw it practically a million times, but because of how close she was to Chichiri. And each time she thought of that, her face would get a bit pink, and she'd mentally smack herself and remind herself that she's 19 and she shouldn't be thinking like a little kid with a crush. But all-in-all, the movie went well.

After the movie was over, Sakura closed the DVD player and yawned a bit. Hishigatsu and Chichiri both climbed off her bed, Chichiri going back to his regular size and stretching a bit. "That was pretty interesting, no da."

"Glad you liked it." Sakura said, rolling over on her side to face the two of them. "Hishigatsu, wanna help me clean up?"

"Do I want to? No. Will I? Yes." She said with a smile. Sakura rolled her eyes and climbed off of the bed, then began searching through her bookbag for something.

"I know it's here somewhere…here it is!" she said, pulling out a plastic bag. "We'll put all the garbage in here, 'kay?"

"Anou, let me help you, no da." Chichiri said, picking up a few wrappers that had fallen on the floor. Sakura opened the bag and he put them in.

"Arigatou Chichiri-kun, but you don't have to." Sakura said.

"I may not have to, but I want to, no da." Chichiri said, grabbing the empty Hawaiian Punch bottle off of the floor and putting it in the bag.

"Who _wants_ to clean?!" Hishigatsu exclaimed, but Sakura and Chichiri ignored her.

"Well then arigatou for the help." Sakura said, and the three of them worked on cleaning the room. A few minutes later, the room was clean, and the DVD player, DVDs, and remaining candy and drinks put away. Hishigatsu and Chichiri bid Sakura goodnight, and Sakura did the same, closing the door behind the two of them. She changed into her pajamas and climbed into bed, tired but happy. The last thought on her mind was still how close Chichiri was to her for more than an hour straight.

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(_The Next Day_)

Sakura slowly opened her eyes and looked at the window. She saw that the sun was already pretty high in the sky and frowned. _Not like me to sleep in._

She got dressed, pulled her hair back, put her shoes on, and decided that she'd just skip breakfast and go for a walk near the pond in the gardens. _I'm still full from all those snacks I ate last night._

She decided to grab her MP3 player that Hishigatsu had given back to her when they'd sorted out their stuff, so she went over to her bag and took it out. She put the headphones onto her ears, turned on the music, and jogged all the way to the gardens just for the heck of it.

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(_A Few Minutes Later; Gardens_)

She was still jogging when she arrived at the gardens. But she arrived just in time to see a bright red light flash a few feet away from her. She stopped her music and put her headphones around her neck, staring as two people fell from the light, who she immediately recognized as Miaka and Taka.

"Jeez, Suzaku-sama really needs to work on his landings! Now I see where Chichiri got his landing skills from!" Taka exclaimed, getting up and immediately helping Miaka up as well. "Daijoubu ka?"

"Hai, arigatou." Miaka said, dusting her skirt off. "And you shouldn't say that about your kami, Taka."

"Anou, Miaka-san? Taka-san?" Sakura interrupted. The two of them looked at her in surprise, they apparently didn't notice that anyone else was there.

"Who are you?" Miaka asked.

"Hey, wait, you look like one of those two girls from that third world!" Taka pointed out.

"Hai, watashi wa Bara Sakura." Sakura said.

"Hajimemashite." they both said.

Then Miaka asked, "Demo, how do you know our names?"

"Well, anou, in my world, your tales were recorded in a series of books, and me and my friend Hi-chan--oh, her full name's Kamui Hishigatsu--read your tales as the Suzaku no Miko with the Suzaku seishi, all the way up to the whole incident with Tenkou." she summarized. "Well, the first one anyway." she added as an afterthought.

Taka and Miaka nodded in understanding. Then Miaka asked, "How long were we gone?"

"Well, you guys left a bit after Hi-chan and I got here, right?" when they both nodded, she continued. "Anou, I think it's been about three weeks, or maybe almost four at most."

"Three or four _weeks_?!" they both exclaimed in surprise.

"We were gone a few hours in our world, I was sure that it would've been three or four _months_ here, at least!" Miaka said, explaining their surprised outburst.

"Nope, it was only somewhere between three to four weeks." Sakura confirmed.

"Where are we?" Taka asked, finally noticing that they weren't at Mt. Taikyoku like they'd been when they'd left.

"We're at the palace. C'mon, I'm sure Chichiri-kun and Tasuki-kun will be happy to see you two." Sakura said, leading them inside. While they were walking, Sakura asked, "Where's Yui-san? Didn't she come back with you?"

"She had to stay after school, so she said she'd meet us here. She has her own scroll, so she can come here on her own." Taka explained.

"Oh, that's right, Yui-san is in the student government, isn't she?" Sakura said.

"Yep, she's the vice president!" Miaka said cheerfully.

Sakura smiled. _She isn't so bad, but I'm gonna have to keep Hi-chan from ripping both of their heads off._ she paused for a second. _Then again, I don't think she'll really care about their "lovey-dovey" stuff now that she has Tasuki-kun. I've still gotta watch out though, just incase. Miaka's peppiness might be reason enough for Hi-chan to rip her head off. _she inconspicuously sweatdropped.

Sakura led them to the dining room--which seemed to be the most frequently visited room, she thought with a chuckle, considering how many different rooms there probably were in the palace--and walked inside, Miaka and Taka right behind her. Chichiri, Tasuki and Hishigatsu all sat there, apparently deep in some sort of conversation.

Miaka ran up to the group, followed closely by Taka and Sakura.

"Konnichiwa minna-san!" Miaka chirped happily.

The group looked up from their conversation. "Miaka-chan! Taka-san! When did you two get back, no da?"

"Just a minute or two ago." Taka said. "Anything happen while we were gone?"

"Well, we ran inta th' big jerk 'imself, an' 'e was in th' ol' hag's body." Tasuki said, leaning back in his chair casually, as if he were discussing the weather. "An' there were a couple've youkai attacks here 'n there. But other than that, ya didn' miss nuthin'."

"You ran into _Tenkou?!_ Are you all alright?!" Miaka asked urgently.

"Don' worry Mi-chan, d'ya really think 'e coul' get t' us that easily?" Tasuki said, giving her his trademark fanged grin, which seemed to reassure the frantic girl. Said frantic girl now turned her peppiness towards the person that Sakura'd been hoping Miaka'd overlook--Hishigatsu.

"Konnichiwa to hajimemashite Hishigatsu-san! Oh, gomen, Sakura-san told me your name." Miaka said. Hishigatsu shot a glare at Sakura, who smiled sheepishly in response. It slipped.

Just like my fist is gonna 'slip' if she doesn't pipe down!

Sakura frowned. Just smile and suck it up.

Hishigatsu glared at Sakura again.

"So you're Sakura-san's friend right? How old are you? What's your world like? Is it like mine?" Miaka started bombarding her with questions.

Hishigatsu sighed and plastered on a fake smile. "In that order: Hai, 18, and my world is basically the same as yours, but we live in the US."

"The _United States_?! Sugoi! You speak great Japanese for an American!" Miaka complimented happily.

"Well, apparently me and Sakura-chan learned Japanese when we came here." Hishigatsu said, shrugging her shoulders. "Back home I barely was able to make out a few words in Japanese, let alone have a conversation."

"What about you, Sakura-san?" Miaka asked, turning to Sakura.

"Mmm, I know a bit more Japanese than Hi-chan, but still no more than a sentence or two." Sakura said.

"Think one of you could help me with my English?" Miaka asked hopefully, looking to Sakura and Hishigatsu, who sweatdropped.

"Maybe some other time." Sakura said, which seemed to be fine with Miaka.

"Where's Yui-san, no da?" Chichiri asked, looking at Taka and Miaka.

"She's still in our world, she said she'll meet up with us in a bit." Miaka said.

"Hey Miaka, do you have the orb that Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama gave you?" Taka asked.

"Hai." she said, taking the orb out of her bag. "Doesn't it look like the one Taiitsukun-sama gave me when I lost the scroll in Kutou? Y'know, the one that we used when we were looking for the remaining seishi?" she showed it to Tasuki, since he was right next to her. He took it and turned it around, examining it.

"Yer right, it does." Tasuki said, handing it back to Miaka. "Ya think it's th' same one?"

"I dunno. I guess we'll find out if we get near one of the seishi." Miaka replied.

"When do you think we should leave?" Taka asked.

"As soon as possible would be best, no da. We haven't found anyone yet, and it's already been three weeks, na no da." Chichiri said. "But it would be in our best interest to leave early tomorrow morning and travel all day, no da."

"But right now, let's eat! I'm starving!" Miaka exclaimed, sitting down at the table. Everyone sweatdropped.

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(_One Hour Later _(_1:00_))

After they finished their lunch (and cleaned out the whole kitchen, thanks to Miaka's black hole of a stomach), Chichiri and Sakura went to inform Houki of their departure, Miaka and Taka went outside to take a walk, and Tasuki went with Hishigatsu to help her pack.

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(_Hotohori's Private Study_)

"Heika, Chichiri-sama and Sakura-sama are here to see you." a royal attendant said, walking into the room and bowing. Houki smiled.

"Onegai, let them in." Houki said kindly. The attendant nodded and led Chichiri and Sakura into the room, and left after being dismissed by Houki. "What brings you two here?"

"Gomen nasai for disturbing you, Houki-sama. We wanted to inform you of our departure tomorrow morning, and kindly ask for some supplies for our journey, if it would not be any trouble for you." Chichiri said.

"Arigatou for informing me, although I am sad that you must leave so soon. However, I will provide you with the palace's best horses and any supplies you may need, as well as wish you all the best of luck on your journey." Houki said.

"Arigatou Houki-sama, we appreciate the help, no da!" Chichiri said, smiling. He bowed, Sakura quickly (and a bit clumsily) doing the same. Chichiri left, and Sakura was about to follow when Houki said, "Onegai, matte Sakura-san."

Sakura walked up to Houki. "What is it, Houki-sama?"

"I just…I know it's a bit much to ask, but can you please watch after Chichiri-san? I know he's powerful, but he tends to try and shoulder everything on his own, and he also tends to bottle things up, though he seems to trust you very much. I'm just asking you to try to be there for him and make sure he doesn't take on more than he can handle." Houki said quietly. "He's one of the few people I have left to remind me of my deceased husband, and not only that, he's a dear friend."

Sakura smiled and put her hand on Houki's shoulder. "Don't worry, I'll make sure to keep him in check." she said, winking at the empress.

Houki smiled and laughed quietly at her response. "I'm sure you will, arigatou."

Sakura nodded and walked out of the room to find Chichiri waiting for her outside. "What was that all about, no da?"

"Oh, Houki-sama wanted to ask me something, that's all." Sakura lied.

Chichiri seemed satisfied with her answer and moved onto another topic. "So, we've got a while before dinner. What do you want to do, no da?"

"Well, you _did_ say you'd train me, so I figure now's as good a time as any to start, ne?"

"Alright, we'll go to the gardens, no da." Chichiri said. "That way no one will distract or disturb us."

"Sounds good." Sakura said, and the two of them headed to the gardens.

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(_Meanwhile; Sakura's Room_)

Hishigatsu got her stuff together and brought it into Sakura's room. She got out Sakura's bag and carefully emptied it out to decide what she'd bring and what would stay, while Tasuki marveled at all of the different things she had laid out on the bed. Some he'd seen before, like the video camera, but most were items he'd never seen before in his life.

"What's this?" he asked, picking up one of the Inuyasha DVDs. "Is this one of those 'photo' things?"

"Nope, believe it or not, that was drawn." Hishigatsu said.

"Damn! This thing looks so fuckin' _real_! Th' only thing that looks that real's th' photo thing!" Tasuki exclaimed, amazed and shocked at the same time.

Hishigatsu hugged him from behind and laughed. "You're kawaii when your amazed, you know that?"

He reached behind him and playfully bonked Hishigatsu on the head. "Oi, I'm a _bandit_! Bandits ain't 'kawaii'!" he turned around, still in Hishigatsu's grasp, now putting them chest-to-chest. "But yer th' only one that I'm lettin' call me that, ya hear? An' don' say it in front o' anyone else neither!" he lowered his voice to a frustrated mutter. "Damn wimmen, makin' me get all sappy 'n' stuff." But nonetheless, he tenderly kissed her forehead and smiled. "What did I do to get a girl like you?"

"Hmm, the main things I can come up with are ran away from home, became a bandit, stole from people, became a bandit _leader_, became a seishi, _saved_ people, and that's about it." she said, then she grinned. "Your life story summed up in about 15 seconds!"

He smiled and shook his head, muttering "Smartass baka."

"Now c'mon, help me separate this stuff, tell me what you think I should bring along." Hishigatsu said. "I'll explain what everything is."

He nodded and Hishigatsu unwrapped her arms from his chest. He picked up a bag and said, "What is this?"

Hishigatsu grinned. "That, my dear Tasuki, is a wonderful thing called candy."

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(_4 Hours Later; Gardens_)

Sakura and Chichiri were still training, and Sakura was doing a pretty amazing job, as Chichiri noticed. He had first taught her how to suppress her ki and sense for other people's ki, which took about an hour for her to get down. The rest of the time was spent working on learning how to gather her ki and use it in different ways. She had learned how to successfully gather her ki, but was having a hard time doing what they were working on next, which was making a sturdy barrier with it.

"How come we're starting with barriers?" Sakura asked.

"Defense over offense, no da!" Chichiri said, smiling.

"You just don't want me to get involved in any fights." Sakura stated plainly, and she saw him wince. She couldn't help but roll her eyes and shake her head while smiling. "Talk about hitting the nail on the head, ne?"

"Nani?"

"Nevermind. Just a fancy way of saying that I'm right." Sakura said. "You know, I _can_ fight, powers or not."

"Just because you _can_ fight doesn't mean you _should_. I can't have you getting hurt by one of those youkai, or by anything! So yes, I don't want you involved in these fights unless it's absolutely necessary, and even _then_ I still want you to stay out as much as possible!" Chichiri said sharply.

Sakura didn't know whether to feel angry for making her seem useless or happy that Chichiri cared for her that much. She, unlike Hishigatsu, opted for anything _but_ fighting, which in this case was just complying with his wishes. She sighed. "Fine, lets get back to working on the barrier." _If it were anyone but Chichiri-kun, I probably would've put up some sort of a fight, but I guess I'm a softie when it involves blue-haired monks._

Chichiri was taken aback by how easily she went along with him. _I thought she'd have argued with me or something, but she didn't even put up a __**miniscule**__ fight, no da! Now that I think about it, she rarely ever goes against what I_--_or anyone, for that matter_--_tell her to do, no da. I guess I just assumed that she'd be like Miaka-chan and Hi-chan._ he nodded. "Arigatou for understanding, no da."

Sakura faintly blushed and rolled her eyes. "Yeah yeah, you're lucky that _you're_ the one who'd said that and not someone else."

Chichiri was a bit confused by this, but he shook it off and continued to help her train.

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The rest of the afternoon went by quickly, Chichiri and Sakura practicing for another two hours before going inside and eating dinner with Houki, Boushin, Tasuki, Hishigatsu, Miaka, and Taka. After that, Chichiri and Hishigatsu helped Sakura pack, and once that was done, they all headed to bed early, a big day ahead of them.

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(_The Next Day_)

"Sakura-chan, wake up, no da!"

Sakura slowly opened her eyes and blushed when she saw a cheerful maskless Chichiri kneeling by her bed. "Ohayo Chichiri-kun." she said sleepily. _Hmm, he must have forgotten to put on his mask. Hee hee, it's my lucky day!_

Chichiri smiled. "Ohayo Sakura-chan, no da. Gomen for coming in your room like this, but we have to leave soon, na no da."

She nodded and he moved so she could get off the bed. She sleepily staggered over to the mirror in her room, much like a drunken person, and Chichiri barely contained his laughter at the sight. "Not much of a morning person, ne?"

She proved this fact true by blushing further and cursing lightly under her breath out of embarrassment. She grabbed the brush off of the vanity where she left it last and brushed out her hair, the brush getting stuck in the many knots in her hair. Chichiri watched her with mild amusement as she struggled to untangle her hair from the brush. He walked up to Sakura and put his hand on hers to still her tired tugging. Then he gently began to untangle her hair from the brush, both of them blushing the whole while.

_Her hair is so smooth and soft…it smells good too…Iie! What am I thinking?! I love Kouran!!_

His 'inner self' sighed in annoyance._** Baka houshi.**_

_Urusai. If you're me, then you're just insulting yourself._

_**At this point I'm beginning to wonder if we really ARE the same.**_

_Urusai._ Chichiri thought and came back to reality before that voice could find something else to say.

When he came back to reality, he realized that he'd finished untangling the brush from her hair and was now absentmindedly but gently brushing her hair. Sakura was blushing but smiling nonetheless. _She's a sweet girl…so easy to please…just a simple thing like brushing her hair makes her happy. And it's cute how she blushes like that, demo…_ He sighed softly._ I don't know what's wrong with me…I'm loyal to Kouran…I __**love**__ Kouran…don't I?_

Meanwhile, Sakura was in a state of pure bliss. _Oh my god, he's brushing my hair, we're standing so close together, and I'm blushing like an idiot! But I don't care! I'm surprised though, he's good at this, not even 'kaa-san brushed it this good. _she paused for a second._ 'Kaa-san…_

Chichiri could've sworn he saw Sakura's features harden for a second in the mirror, but her face went back to normal so fast that he wasn't sure if he imagined it or not. When he looked in the mirror again, he finally realized that in his rush to get ready and get everyone out, he'd forgotten to put on his mask. He abruptly stopped brushing Sakura's hair, and she turned around in confusion. "Daijoubu ka?"

Chichiri said nothing put turned his head so his scar was out of sight, and she realized that he finally realized that he didn't have his mask on.

"Gomen nasai Sakura-chan. I didn't realize that I'd…gomen." he said, his eye closed and his head turned away to hide his scar. _I'm such a baka! How could I forget my mask! I'm sure that this is the __**last**__ thing someone would want to see first thing in the morning. _he thought bitterly.

She decided with determination to be forward for once in her life. Chichiri's eye shot open in surprise as she gently moved his head so that his scar now faced her, and did something that shocked Chichiri and Sakura both. She stood up on her toes and gently kissed his scar.

--Chichiri's POV--

What just happened? Why…why did she do that? I felt my eye widen in surprise on its own and I saw that she had a similar expression on her face. But dear Suzaku, what possessed her to do something like _that_?! What was she trying to tell me? And the worst part was, when her lips touched my skin…I…I…IIE!! Why is she confusing me like this?! I love Kouran demo…I think…that maybe…I lo--Iie! I can't love two women at once!

_**You're right, you can't. You only love Sakura. End of story.**_

I mentally glared at that stupid voice that had been bothering me for a while now, but I refused to listen. Besides, even IF I'm in love with her, WHICH I'M NOT, it's not like she'll ever love me back…who could ever love a…a…a **murderer** like me?!

_**Why do I even bother.**_ my 'inner self' said flatly.

_Urusai._ I thought sharply. My thoughts drifted to everyone else, Tasuki-kun and Hi-chan, Taka-san and Miaka-chan…I couldn't help but feel a bit envious of them and the happiness they had, and I briefly wondered if I could have that same happiness with Sakura. But, once again, I shook the thought off. Honestly, what is _wrong_ with me?! I feel like I'm going through puberty all over again! I'M **28 YEARS OLD** FOR SUZAKU'S SAKE!! (.) But I couldn't get the thought of her out of my head, and I felt a longing…a longing that I only felt when Kouran was around…maybe…maybe Suzaku-sama is trying to give me another chance?

_**Jeez, if this is what happens when she gives you a kiss on your SCAR, what would've happened if she'd kissed your LIPS?**_ my 'inner self' chuckled and I turned crimson.

_Urusai!_

But a little part of me--a _**veeeery**_ tiny part, mind you--couldn't help but wish that she'd been a little more forward and done just that, seeing as I'd probably never have the courage to do that myself.

--Sakura's POV--

**I CANNOT BELIEVE I JUST DID THAT!!**

I can just imagine Chichiri fans all around the world going green with envy! Heh heh…hai, well, putting that fangirlish moment aside……I _really_ did it to show him that I don't mind his scar…that I know all about his past, and I love him just the way he is. Love…that word kept repeating in my mind like a broken record. It seems so…right. Maybe…maybe I should just go for it. I mean, maybe Suzaku brought me here to give me a second chance, a brand new start in a brand new world. But I don't want to make things uncomfortable between us if I go and do what Miaka did. I mean really! 'IthinkImfallinginlovewithyou(gasp)!' I mentally rolled my eyes. Nope, not gonna work. Maybe…maybe if I tell him about…_it_…iie, iie I can't. I won't be able to stand seeing him look at me with disgust and repulsion…not him…gods, anyone but _him_…But it's gonna come out sooner or later…I'll just worry about it when the time comes then. But I hope that what I just did doesn't make him mad. Onegai…don't let him be mad…

--Normal POV--

Sakura quietly spoke up. "Onegai…I hope you're not mad." she straightened up and looked him square in the eye before continuing. "But I won't apologize for what I just did."

Chichiri's eye widened in surprise.

"I wanted to show you that I don't mind your scar one bit, I know all about your past, but I still lo--like you!"

_Wait…did she just…it sounded like she was about to say love…maybe it was my imagination, no da._ Chichiri thought, but then what she said finally sunk in. He looked at her with mixed expressions. "How?"

"W-When you talked with Miaka-san by the pond before you guys set out to Hokkan…a-and your fight with Hikou, when he showed everyone what happened…" she said shakily. _Oh Suzaku, he's going to be so royally pissed off, isn't he?_

But to her surprise, he just sighed and sat down at the edge of Sakura's bed. "I should've figured, no da…I forgot about those things, and it didn't occur to me that you probably…read about them, no da. Gomen nasai." Chichiri said.

Sakura sat down next to him. "Onegai…I hope you're not upset with me…you're one of the best friends I've ever had…you're one of the _only_ friends I've ever had." the last part came out as a mumble under her breath, but because she was sitting next to him, he heard it as well as if she would have just spoken it aloud. He looked at her in confusion.

"I would've thought that you'd have a lot of friends, no da." Chichiri said.

Sakura shook her head. "Nope, Hi-chan was my first real friend. But enough about me, we have to get ready to leave, don't we?"

Chichiri blinked at the sudden change in discussion but nodded. "I'm already ready, so I'll go back to my room to get my stuff while you get dressed, okay, no da? I left you clothes over there, for until we leave the town." he gestured towards the clothes on a nearby chair and continued. "We're going to try to stay out of towns to avoid drawing attention to ourselves. Anyway, I already got Tasuki-kun up and Taka-kun was already up, so they should be getting up Hi-chan and Miaka-chan right now no da. We'll head out in a few minutes, na no da."

Sakura nodded and Chichiri left the room so Sakura could start to get dressed, both of them pushing the previous scene to the back of their minds.

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(_Meanwhile; Hishigatsu's Room_)

Hishigatsu slowly opened her eyes upon hearing her name, and she smiled when her eyes came to rest on Tasuki. _On my koi…_ she mentally corrected, before grinning. _Man it feels good to call him that! If I can wake up to this every day, then I guess I can_'_t call mornings evil anymore, now can I?_

"Ohayo koi." Tasuki said, smiling and giving her a small good-morning kiss. "Gomen for wakin' ya up so early, but blame Chiri. 'e says we gotta go as soon as possible an' 'e tol' me t' wake ya up."

"It's okay, I don't mind." Hishigatsu said, barely being able to keep herself from drooling. He had apparently just rolled out of bed himself, so his hair was a bit messed up, but that wasn't what she was looking at. Tasuki apparently hadn't bothered to put a shirt on, and she couldn't take her eyes off his chest. He noticed this and grinned teasingly. "What'cha lookin' at, hentai?"

"Urusai." she smiled nonetheless. "Now get out so I can get changed."

"Fine, fine. Chiri gave me clothes fer ya t' wear 'till we leave town, they're ova there." he gestured towards the clothes before continuing. "I'll be back 'ere in a few minutes t' bring ya out front, 'kay?" Hishigatsu nodded and Tasuki left to get ready while Hishigatsu got changed.

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(_Meanwhile; Miaka's Room_)

Anou…I don't think you really wanna know what's going on in there. (sweatdrop)

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(_A Few Minutes Later; In Front Of The Palace_)

Four horses, one piled with supplies, were waiting for them outside. It was decided that Sakura would ride with Chichiri, Hishigatsu would ride with Tasuki, and Miaka would ride with Taka, since none of the girls knew how to ride a horse on their own.

Houki stood outside to bid them farewell. Chichiri walked up to her, dug around in his kasa, and, smiling, pulled out a mirror and gave it to her. Before she could ask what it was, he explained. "If there is any trouble, just call for either me or Tasuki-kun through the mirror, no da. We'll hear you and be here as fast as possible, so you don't need to worry, na no da."

Houki smiled and nodded. "Arigatou."

The guys helped the girls onto their horses and then climbed on themselves. After Miaka almost falling off of her horse twice, the group was ready to head out.

"Ja ne (no da)!" they all exclaimed before riding off.

"Ja ne…and gambatte, my friends." Houki said quietly, before returning inside the palace. And so the journey continues…

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(_Meanwhile_)

Tenkou watched the seishi and the girls leave with an evil smirk on his face, but his gaze was on Chichiri and Sakura.

"The houshi seems to be confused between his feelings for this girl and his feelings for his dead fiancé, and the onna seems to feel the remnants of the crime she's committed, and is trying to push feelings of love away in the process. Interesting…"

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IP - Jeez, that chappie was long! (n.n") Yay for more Sakura-Chichiri WAFF! (grin) Oh, and I decided to try throwing in different POVs (Point Of Views, incase anyone doesn't know (n.n)), so tell me how I did with that. Please R&R! (n.n)


	14. Unexpected Arrivals, Departures, And

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Hey folks, sorry about the wait on this one--I was planning on putting it up sooner, but (as usual) life got in the way. (sweatdrop) Anyway, I have an announcement to make. I'm going to--

Crystal - (bursts in) I QUIT!

IP - (sweatdrop) Err…is there a problem?

Crystal - Yes, that problem being that I'm sick of these disclaimers--and of that stupid bandit!

(random curses can be heard in the background via a certain red-haired bandit)

IP - (blinks) I thought you two got along fine.

Crystal - We _did_, until he got bored with making fun of Taka and Nuriko, and started bothering me. So I just wanted to tell you that I'm quitting these disclaimers--creation of yours or not.

IP - Err, Crystal…y'see, before you burst in, I was just going to tell the audience that I'm stopping the disclaimers starting chapter 15.

Crystal - (blinks) Really?

IP - Really.

Crystal - Oh.

(silence)

Crystal - (sweatdrop) Well…er…I'll be leaving now…and I guess I can say this as a final farewell--enjoy the chapter.

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

((The Real Story Behind That: I just kept forgetting to add Crystal into the disclaimers (n.n") Though I _am_ actually stopping the disclaimers. Sorry folks!))

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

_**speech**_ speech inside the character's head that's not their own (NOT TELEPATHY)

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 13 - Unexpected Arrivals, Departures, And Meetings

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(_Three Days Later_)

"Come on, the orb has to be doing _something_ by now!!"

They group has been traveling for 3 days, but they might as well have been walking around in circles, seeing as they got absolutely nowhere.

"Hi-chan, yelling won't help anything. Just suck it up." Sakura said, annoyed. Then she leaned her head back to look at Chichiri. "But are you sure the orb isn't doing anything?"

"Hai, no da. It's odd though…" he trailed off.

"What's odd?" Taka asked, moving his horse closer to Chichiri's.

"When Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama gave Miaka-chan and Yui-san the orb and the map, they seemed to be radiating some sort of power, no da. It might have just been the fact that Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama were present, demo…I don't feel any power from the orb right now."

"That _is_ odd…" Taka said.

"Maybe they only work when they're together. The orb and map, I mean." Sakura suggested.

"Maybe, but we won't know for sure until Yui-san comes back, no da." Chichiri said.

"Well, she'd better hurry up." Hishigatsu muttered, leaning back on Tasuki's chest. "Mooooooooou, I'm boooooored!!" she whined.

"Me too! Taka, can't we stop for lunch? I'm hungry!" Miaka complained.

"You're _always_ hungry!" Taka exclaimed, but one puppy-dog look from Miaka made him cave in. He sighed. "Chichiri, do you think it's too early to stop for a break?"

Chichiri smiled. "If we go a few more minutes, there's a nice clearing, no da. We can stop there and rest, na no da."

Hishigatsu whooped for joy, almost falling off of the horse in the process.

"Careful, we don' 'ave Mits yet, rememba?" Tasuki said, helping her back into the right position on the horse.

"Arigatou Tasuki." Hishigatsu said, leaning her head back and giving him a peck on the lips.

Tasuki smiled and kissed the top of her head as she faced forward. He made sure the horse with the supplies was still following before nudging the horse to make it go at a faster pace to catch up with the other two horses.

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(_A Few Minutes Later_)

The group arrived at the clearing, hopped off of the horses and stretched, Miaka diving for the pack with the food and Taka intercepting her. "Whoa there Miaka, we need this food for everyone!"

Miaka pouted but backed away from the pack. She ran over to Sakura and Hishigatsu, who were looking through Sakura's bag.

"What'cha doing?" she asked, peering over both their shoulders.

"Looking for something…here it is!" Sakura declared happily, pulling out the soccer ball that she received from one of the Nyan-Nyans.

"Sugoi! You like soccer?" Miaka asked.

Sakura nodded happily.

"You kidding? Soccer is like Sakura-chan's life! Well, that and school, cooking, and Ch--"

Sakura slapped her hand over Hishigatsu's mouth before she could finish. Miaka looked at them for a minute before shrugging it off and asking, "Can I play with you?"

"Sure, why don't we get the boys to play too? Then we can do three-on-three!" Sakura said happily, then her face got serious. "We _**will not**_ lose to them, ya hear?!"

Hishigatsu and Miaka sweatdropped. "Sakura-chan's very competitive." Hishigatsu explained.

"Anou, Sakura-san? Don't you think we should see if they want to play first?" Miaka asked meekly.

"Hm? Oh, you're right. Let's go!" Sakura said, going back to her normal sweet self. Hishigatsu and Miaka's sweatdrops grew bigger.

"Yep, she's _definitely_ a Gemini." Hishigatsu said, rolling her eyes. The three girls went off to get the boys.

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(_A Few Minutes Later_)

The boys had hesitantly agreed to play a game of soccer, Sakura having to explain the rules in full detail to Chichiri and Tasuki and reassure them that no one would get hurt. Once they agreed, the group went on the field and picked field sides, the girls ending up on the left and the boys on the right.

"Okay, we'll use these sticks here…" she gestured towards the sticks she'd stuck in the ground about 6 feet from each other on both sides of the field before continuing. "…as goalposts. You have to kick the ball in between the two sticks to score a point. First to 50 wins!"

"50?!" they all exclaimed.

She sighed in mock-annoyance. "Fine, first to 10 wins. Happy?" Sakura said, rolling her eyes.

Everyone nodded.

"Oh, and no powers, got it? That goes for both teams, so Hi-chan and I can't use our powers either." Sakura said, and the boys nodded, one more hesitantly than the others.

"C'mon, why can't I use my speed?" Tasuki whined.

"It's unfair to everyone else." Sakura said simply, rolling her eyes. "Deal with it."

Tasuki sulked but agreed.

"Okay, one person has to be the goalie, which is the person who guards the goal and tries to make sure that the ball doesn't go in, and the other two people can play center, seeing as this isn't a serious game and there's not a lot of people. Center basically means that you can move anywhere on the field, the goalie can only stay by the goal." Sakura concluded.

They all nodded and went off to their sides to plan positions.

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(_A Few Minutes Later_)

The girls decided on Miaka being goalie and Hishigatsu and Sakura being center, and the boys decided on Taka being goalie and Tasuki and Chichiri being center. Miaka and Taka moved in front of the goals, and Hishigatsu, Sakura, Tasuki, and Chichiri moved onto the field.

"Okay, same plan as always." Sakura said, smiling. Hishigatsu nodded, also smiling, and hung back as Sakura moved towards the approximated center of the field. Chichiri looked at Tasuki, who smiled and pushed him forward. "I'll watch yer back." Chichiri knew that he just wanted to match Hishigatsu, but didn't say anything as he stepped up.

"Okay, stand over here." Sakura moved Chichiri over a bit, then backed away to put 4 feet between them. "Okay, I'm gonna hold the soccer ball in the air with my telekinesis, but that's the only time I'll use my powers. Once the ball hit's the ground we can move in."

Chichiri nodded.

Sakura smiled and lifted the ball 7 feet in the air. "Ready minna?"

"Hai (no da)!" they all chorused.

Sakura retracted her power and the ball fell to the ground. Sakura and Chichiri were both smart, so they didn't charge in recklessly. Instead they both held their ground and watched each other quietly.

"Oi! What th' hell're ya doin'?! Get th' ball!" Tasuki exclaimed, but Chichiri ignored him.

Hishigatsu, knowing Sakura's usual game plan, just waited and watched, but was surprised to see that Chichiri was doing the same thing Sakura was. _Jeez, those two are so alike it's scary._ she thought, rolling her eyes. She smiled nonetheless.

Suddenly, Sakura moved in for the ball. Chichiri saw this a moment too late and Sakura got a hold of the ball. He tried to swipe his foot to get the ball away from her, but she maneuvered around him and towards the goal. Tasuki moved in front of her, smirking. "Where d'ya think _yer_ goin'?"

"Around you, of course." she replied simply. She made it appear that she was going to move to the right, and the minute he moved, she quickly kicked the ball to the left and ran after it, bringing it around him.

"What th' hell?!" Tasuki exclaimed, turning around and chasing after Sakura. Chichiri ran to the side and attempted to cut her off but she blasted the ball past the two of them and into the goal. Taka gaped as the ball sailed past him.

"Girls one, Boys none!" Sakura said happily, making a peace sign with her hands and grinning. Her teammates whooped.

"Awesome Sakura-san!" Miaka cheered, pumping her fist in the air.

"Aw c'mon Mi-chan, show some sympathy!" Tasuki whined.

"No sympathy for the enemy!!" Sakura exclaimed, and everyone sweatdropped.

"Competitive?" Taka guessed.

Hishigatsu nodded, sweatdrop still present.

Sakura took a few steps back and they resumed the game. Taka picked up the ball and Tasuki exclaimed, "Wait a minute, I thought ya said we can't touch th' ball with our hands?"

"The goalies are the only ones allowed to touch the ball with their hands." Sakura explained. "Gomen, forgot to tell you."

Taka nodded and got ready to throw the ball. He looked at Tasuki, then continuously moved his eyes to Chichiri until Tasuki got the idea. Tasuki grinned and pretended to get ready to receive the ball, and Sakura noticed this and inched towards him.

_Perfect._ Taka thought, mentally smirking. He looked at Chichiri without moving his head and Chichiri got the idea. He readied himself inconspicuously.

"Well, you gonna throw the ball or stand there and look pretty?!" Hishigatsu exclaimed from the other side of the field impatiently.

Taka didn't reply, but instead got ready to throw the ball. He made it look like he was going to throw to Tasuki, but at the last second he turned around and threw it to Chichiri.

"Da!" he exclaimed, stopping the ball with his chest and wincing. "You didn't have to throw it so hard, no da!"

"Gomen." Taka apologized sheepishly.

Chichiri ran fast, dribbling the ball towards Miaka. _Sakura was right, moving the ball with your feet is easier than it sounded, no da._

Hishigatsu ran to intercept him, but he stopped suddenly and changed his direction, moving around Hishigatsu and startling her. She snapped out of it quickly exclaimed, "Get ready Miaka-san!"

Miaka nodded and readied herself, smiling. "Just _try_ and get it past me!" she taunted.

Chichiri blasted the ball towards the unguarded part of the goal, but Miaka expected this and dove for the ball, catching it in both of her arms and landing on her stomach. She rolled over on her back and held the ball up in the air triumphantly. "Hah! Told'ja you can't get it past me!"

"Daijoubu ka, no da?" Chichiri asked.

"Hai, arigatou." Miaka said, smiling.

Sakura joined Hishigatsu and Chichiri near the goal. She turned to Chichiri and smiled. "Hard to believe that you've never played soccer before. Not bad."

Chichiri smiled and ruffled Sakura's hair. "What happened to your competitive attitude, no da?"

She practically melted into a puddle of goo at his touch, but she pulled herself together and smiled. "It disappeared in the face of a worthy adversary."

"Why thank you, I'm honored to be thought of as such, no da." he chuckled, and she playfully whacked him on the head.

"Don't get cocky." she said, smiling. "We're still gonna beat you guys, no sweat!"

"Yeah, you tell him Sakura-san!" Miaka cheered.

"C'mon, throw the ball!" Hishigatsu exclaimed, and Miaka threw the ball towards the center of the field, Sakura and Chichiri running after it. Sakura jumped and caught the ball between her knees before dropping it to the ground. She held one foot on the ball and rolled it around a bit, almost mocking him. "What's the matter Chichiri-kun? Too fast for you?"

Chichiri ran for the ball and Sakura kicked it to the side. But Chichiri anticipated this and sidestepped to intercept the ball, and then he quickly kicked it back to Tasuki.

" 'bout time!" Tasuki said, smirking.

Even without his seishi speed, Tasuki was still pretty fast. He ran past Sakura before she had a chance to notice, and blasted the ball past Miaka and through the make-shift goal, hitting the tree not too far behind it.

"Gomen." Miaka said, but Sakura shook her head, smiling.

"It's alright, I wouldn't have wanted you to block that anyway. That shot was going pretty fast, and you could've hurt yourself if you caught it the wrong way."

Hishigatsu nodded in agreement.

"Miaka! Daijoubu ka?!" Taka exclaimed from the other side of the field.

"Hai, daijoubu!" Miaka exclaimed back. She ran to get the ball and prepared to throw it. "Get ready, 'cuz we're gonna get you back for that point!"

The two other girls whooped and the game continued.

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(_1 Hour Later_)

"Told'ja we'd win!"

The group of six collapsed in a heap, the girls still teasing the boys on how they'd lost.

"Oh come on, we only lost by 4 points, okay?! That's pretty good for a team that had two people who've never played soccer before." Taka said.

Sakura nodded. "He's got a point. You guys did pretty good." she turned to Tasuki and Chichiri and smiled. "I've gotta say that at some points in the game, I found it hard to believe that you two've never played soccer before."

"Arigatou (no da)." They both said.

"Can we eat _now_?!" Miaka exclaimed.

Sakura nodded. "After all that running around, I'm sure that everyone's hungry, ne?"

They all nodded and proceeded to set up lunch.

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(_2 Hours And 3 Sacks Of Food Later_)

"Mmm, that was good!" Miaka exclaimed, laying down and patting her stomach contently.

"Yeah, nothing like eating two sacks-worth of food ne?" Hishigatsu said sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

But Miaka, being ever the oblivious person, nodded, and everyone else sweatdropped.

If they would have glanced at the orb that very moment, they would have seen it glow a faint purple before returning back to normal.

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(_Meanwhile; Yui's House_)

_I feel bad about lying to Tetsuya like that…_

Yui walked into her house and up to her room. She started to pack a small bag for her trip into the ShiJinTenChiSho. "I wish I could've told him, demo I don't want him to get involved…I don't want him getting hurt."

She finished packing her bag and was now looking through her drawer for the map and the scroll, her watch safely on her wrist. She found them and took them out carefully, tucking the map away in her bag. Then she put her bag on her back (it was a backpack-type bag) and readied herself to go in the scroll. She paused, opening the door and looking out in the hallway. Her brows wrinkled in confusion and suspicion. _I thought I heard something…_

She shrugged it off and got ready to open the scroll, one hand holding the scroll and the other gripping the edge of the parchment. She was about to open the scroll when arms encircled her from behind and a small kiss was placed on the top of her head. "Surprise." a voice said into her ear, not noticing the scroll at the moment.

Apparently, Yui forgot that she was holding the scroll, and she moved her arms to return Tetsuya's embrace. But the action caused the scroll to open and the area to glow a dark blue.

"N-Nani?!" Tetsuya exclaimed, feeling both Yui and himself disappear.

"Oh cra--!" Yui started, but they both disappeared before she had a chance to finish, leaving the scroll to fall to the floor in the now-empty room.

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(_Back With The Suzaku Group_)

"Huh?" Miaka saw a faint glow of red coming from her pocket and found that it was her pager that was glowing. She looked at Taka and noticed that his pager was out and glowing as well. Suddenly, Suzaku and Seiryuu appeared out of nowhere. "You wished to speak with us, Hishigatsu?"

All eyes turned to Hishigatsu, who sweatdropped and laughed nervously. "Eheheh…hai, I did."

She turned to the two kami. "Anou…would you mind us going somewhere…_else_…to talk? And can Sakura-chan come too? It's nothing too serious, don't worry."

The two kami nodded and lead the two girls away from the confused seishi and miko.

Once they were out of earshot, Sakura turned to Hishigatsu in confusion. "What's this all about?"

Hishigatsu grinned. "I wanted to ask them if they could give me a leash for Tasuki, persay." She held up volume 1 of Inuyasha and Sakura understood.

"You're kidding, right?" she asked, looking at Hishigatsu skeptically.

"You _know_ the only other series besides Fushigi Yuugi that I'm obsessed with is Inuyasha!" Hishigatsu said. "Besides, it would be funny, ne?"

Sakura giggled. "Oh yeah, the guy's like Inuyasha as it is, just give him the beads of subjugation and he's a Chinese red-haired bandit-version of Inuyasha!"

"And…maybe you could ask for a pair of those lovely beads for Chichiri?" Hishigatsu suggested slyly.

Sakura couldn't help but laugh quietly. "Demo, that would be mean! Funny, but still mean."

"Anou, girls?" Suzaku said to get their attention.

"Gomen nasai Suzaku-sama, Seiryuu-sama." they apologized, then Hishigatsu stepped up.

"We were wondering if you had the power to make something if we showed it to you and described it to you." Hishigatsu said.

"Depends on what it is." Seiryuu said coolly.

"They're called the beads of subjugation. Some sort of spell is used to make prayer beads go around a person's neck, and when the person given control over the beads says a word of subjugation, the beads react in a different way, restraining the person wearing the beads. In my opinion, Tasuki's a bit reckless, and if you made these beads, put them around him, and let me control them, I can make sure that he doesn't do anything bad." she explained, trying to look as convincing and innocent as possible.

"Also, there are advantages to the beads of subjugation, which is why I also want to request having them for Chichiri too, only allowing me to control his instead." Sakura stepped up, and Hishigatsu grinned. She continued, pushing back a grin of her own. "Anyway, let's say that we're in a battle, and an enemy comes behind Chichiri and is about to, sumimasen for being so blunt, cut his head off. Well, if I say 'osuwari', he gets pulled down towards the ground and the attack misses. And with my powers, I can help him up fast enough for him to get a counterattack in. Understand?" Sakura concluded. Both kami looked thoughtful for a minute before nodding.

"We shall make it that you, Sakura, have control over Suzaku no Chichiri's beads, and you, Hishigatsu, shall have control over Suzaku no Tasuki's beads. Try not to kill him though."

"Eheheh…" Hishigatsu sweatdropped. "Will do."

The kami each put their hands together in the same position that Chichiri does, and closed their eyes in concentration. Beads in the form of a necklace appeared before each of them, and once the two necklaces touched, they both glowed a faint purple. Then the beads separated and shot out. The kami nodded to the girls, signaling that it had worked, as if Tasuki's loud "WHAT TH' HELL?!" wasn't signal enough. The two kami disappeared and the two girls ran back to the group to find Tasuki and Chichiri frantically tugging at their new necklaces.

"What th' hell!! Why won't this damn thing come off?!" Tasuki exclaimed in frustration.

"It's odd, I feel Suzaku and Seiryuu's power emanating from these necklaces, no da." Chichiri said, slowing his tugging. He turned to look at the girls. "What are these, no da? I have a feeling you girls have something to do with them, na no da."

"What?! What th' hell're these things!! Why d'ya have somethin' t' do with 'em?!" Tasuki blurted out, confused.

"Oh, be quiet Tas-chan." Hishigatsu said, rolling her eyes.

"Iie! Tell me!" he demanded.

Hishigatsu smirked. "Go ahead, say that again."

"Tell me!!" he demanded again, glaring at her.

"Osuwari." she said plainly.

Tasuki saw the beads glow and felt them get heavier and heavier, pulling him to the ground. "What th' he--!!"

(thud)

"Itai…" Tasuki lay face-first in the ground, twitching. Notice I said _in_ the ground, and not _on_ the ground. (n.n")

Taka and Miaka gaped, stunned, while Chichiri glanced at Sakura, who was rolling with laughter along with Hishigatsu, nervously. He was obviously the smartest of the group, and it didn't take him too long to put 2 and 2 together. He saw the beads glow after Hishigatsu had said 'osuwari', and he saw the beads pull him down to the ground--hard--after they'd glowed. And he also noticed that this all happened within a few seconds.

"A-Anou…Sakura-chan…daa…"

Sakura turned her laughter towards the expression on Chichiri's face. "I guess you figured it out?" he nodded nervously. "Well, I have to do it you know. What would happen if I didn't say anything now, but then later on I accidentally say something compatible with the beads that has some lethal effect or something?"

Chichiri's eyebrows shot up. "Demo, why did you make Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama put these beads on us?"

"Osuwari."

"Daa!"

(thud)

Sakura knelt down next to the chibi twitching monk and laughed. "Right now they're for entertainment purposes!"

"Itai…no da."

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(_A Few Minutes Later_)

After everyone recomposed themselves, and after Tasuki was pulled out of the Tasuki-shaped crater and Taka's 3rd-degree burns had basically healed (just guess where he got those from), they got ready to go. That is, until…

"Nani?!" Taka exclaimed, looking at his glowing body. "We're going already?!"

"Taka!" Miaka rushed over to him and grabbed his hand just incase.

"We'll see you guys soon!" Taka exclaimed before the couple disappeared in a burst of red light.

"Well…now what?" Sakura asked, looking at Chichiri.

"We should just stay here for tonight, no da. The sun's already starting to set, so there's no point in moving on for today."

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(_Meanwhile; Just After Miaka And Taka Left_)

"Oof!"

Yui and Tetsuya landed hard on the dirt floor of an alleyway, Tetsuya breaking Yui's (and her heavy bag's) fall.

"Daijoubu desu ka?" Yui asked, getting off of Tetsuya.

"Hai, daijoubu." Tetsuya reassured. Then his features went serious as he took off his sunglasses and looked Yui straight in the eye. "We're in the ShiJinTenChiSho now, aren't we?"

"Hai." she said, looking down at the floor.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Tetsuya asked, his tone gentle.

"I didn't want you to get pulled into all this, but it looks like it's too late for that, ne?" she said, giving him a lopsided apologetic smile. Tetsuya replaced his sunglasses and gave her a reassuring smile, holding her close.

"Hmm, whaddya we have here?"

Yui and Tetsuya turned around to find a group of gruff men eyeing Yui. Tetsuya moved in front of Yui protectively.

"Back off!" he exclaimed, glaring at the group of men, though they couldn't see it since he had his sunglasses on.

"An' what're you gonna do about it, hmm?" the biggest man, apparently the leader, said. Before Tetsuya could react, the man exclaimed, "Get 'em! Don't hurt th' girl, but do whatever ya want with th' guy!"

The men charged, and Tetsuya braced himself when…

"UGH!!"

Tetsuya and Yui watched as the men fell to the ground one by one, surrounded by pools of their own blood. A boy jumped off of the roof of a nearby building and landed in front of the fleeing leader. "And where do you think _you're_ going?" the boy asked in a dangerously low voice. His weapon spinned around dangerously, hovering an inch over the boy's hand as if waiting to be released. Which is exactly what the boy did.

"I-Iie! IIE!"

The weapon ripped through the man's body as if it were paper, then carefully returned to it's owner's hand, where it stopped spinning. Now it was just a strange-looking ball attached to a rope. The boy turned to the couple. "Daijoubu k--"

The boy dropped his weapon in shock as he saw the girl.

"Y-Yui-sama?!"

Yui and Tetsuya looked equally as shocked, Yui taking a step towards him in disbelief. "Su…boshi?"

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IP - Okay, I wanna state that I don't own the beads of subjugation, but I've always thought that Taiitsukun should've stuck them on Tasuki at some point. I mean, I like the bandit as much as the next girl (of course not more then da monk (n.n)) but that guy gets out of hand sometimes; he's just way too reckless! And I know that this is the second show I've borrowed from, but…well…(sweatdrop) Okay, so I don't have an excuse for my actions, I just wanted them so I can have one more way to torture my favorite characters! (grin)

Tasuki - (grumbling) (muttering a lot of colorful words)

Hishigatsu - Osuwari! (grin)

(thud)

Tasuki - (twitching and mumbling even more colorful words)

Chichiri - Daa… (sweatdrop) Hey, why do _I_ have to have these things?

IP - Because I'm the authoress and what I say goes! (n.n) (Whoa, chapter 13 disclaimer déjà vu. (sweatdrop) But seriously, they _do_ play a minor part in an upcoming chappie…that's not to say that they play a _beneficial_ part, but…(sweatdrop) IIII'm just gonna shut up now, seeing as I'm not exactly making things any better for myself (sweatdrop) I promise I won't borrow ideas from other anime/shows again! This is the last time, I swear!)

Chichiri - (pouts)

Sakura - (shakes head) Please R&R. (U.U)

((IP - About the next chapter, it's going to be a multi-part chapter. The thing is, I wrote it, like, a few years ago, and I was actually considering not posting it. But after rereading it a few times and doing some editing on it, I managed to make it at least semi-presentable. The idea of the chapter seems a bit stupid (but still a bit funny) now that I think about it, so please don't be too harsh when you review it! Alright, I guess that's all I wanted to say. Jaa!))


	15. Chapter 14 part 1

((IP - Wow, I _really_ can't believe I'm going through with this...Anyway, please don't be _too_ harsh in your reviews, if you find this chappie...erm...not to your liking, I guess. (sweatdrop) Oh yeah, just a note for people who actually read the disclaimers--I never really used to watch any scary movies, if it isn't apparent from the list. (bigger sweatdrop) Well, here goes...(winces in anticipation)))

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Yay! I finally get to do this chappie! Or should I say these chapp_ies_ (;D) I've been wanting to do them ever since I saw a certain movie again (which you all should be able to guess from the title of the 'series' of chapters (n.n))

Nakago - (evil yet hopeful grin) Would that movie happen to be Saw, or Saw II, or Jaws, or Boogeyman, or the Exorcism of Emily Rose, or The Ring, or The Ring Two, or--

IP - (glare) No, it's none of those stupid horror movies. Actually, it's more humor! (n.n) ((Oh, and on the subject of humor, I would like to tell everyone that because these are mostly humor-based chapters, I'm sorta changing Tenkou's attitude from 'evil-villain' to 'evil-villain-wannabe', just to make things a little funnier, and because I was in the mood for some serious Tenkou-bashing, just for the heck of it (XD)))

Tasuki - Which means torture fer us. (-.-)

Taka - (snickers) Yeah, you being tortured is our humor!

Tasuki - Grr…get ova here you stupid Obake-chan! (takes out tessen and starts chasing Taka)

Taka - (runs away while laughing)

Chichiri - Daa…(sweatdrop) (turns to IP) You won't _really_ torture us, will you, no da?

IP - (grins) Course not Chiri-kun! (;D)

Sakura - Somehow I find that hard to believe…(-.-)

IP - Anyway, these chappies, as non-beneficial to the plot as they may be, _do_ have a purpose (which should hopefully become clear _sometime_ during these 'series' of chappies (XP)). Okay, let's get this show on the road, shall we? I don't own the FY cast, and enjoy this series of chappies! (evil grin)

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

_**speech**_ speech inside the character's head that's not their own (NOT TELEPATHY)

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 14 - Honey, He Shrunk The Seishi! **Part 1** (Chichiri & Tasuki - (o.O"""") Tasuki - Oh _hell_ no!)

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(_A Few Minutes Later_)

The two seishi and the two girls decided to stop and set up camp, since Chichiri said that there wasn't anything else that they could do for the day. The sun was already two or three hours away from setting, and they wouldn't get very far in that time. So Chichiri and Tasuki went to go 'find dinner' (so that they wouldn't use up any more of the supplies for now, and because the feast Miaka had largely depleted their food supply), Hishigatsu went to find firewood, and Sakura worked on setting up camp.

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(_Meanwhile; In The Palace Of The Heavens_)

Tenkou sat in what used to be Taiitsukun's throne, watching the seishi and girls through a magical mirror. He let out a small evil laugh. _The two seishi are alone…perfect. I shall rid myself of them first._ "Haruko!" he called out.

A puff of black smoke appeared about four feet to the left of Tenkou. The smoke cleared to reveal a seemingly young man, looking no more than 18 years old. He had jet-black hair that went down to his waist, and was dressed in similar clothes as Chichiri, only in darker shades of color and without a kesa. His build was similar to that of a young boy's, with no visible muscles. But perhaps his most noticeable feature was his eyes. Like his hair, they were jet-black, so black that it made it seem as if he had no pupils, thus giving them a possessed kind of look.

Haruko bowed to Tenkou. "You called, my lord?"

"Hai, I want you to go and destroy those bothersome seishi. They, along with the other seishi and that blasted miko, have gotten in the way of my plans for too long now." Tenkou said with a scowl.

Haruko bowed again. "Hai, Tenkou-sama. They shall trouble you and your plans no more, I will make sure of that. I've been working on a new death-spell, and I've been just _dying_ to try it out!"

(crickets chirp)

Haruko coughed into his hand out of embarrassment and sweatdropped. "Yes, well, in any case, I have been working on a spell that will not only kill them, it will utterly destroy their bodies, leaving no trace of them even being there behind, while still causing them unimaginable pain. Is that acceptable, my lord?"

Tenkou chuckled evilly. "Hai, go now and take them out while they're alone, it will be much easier that way."

Haruko nodded. "Hai Tenkou-sama, if that is what you wish." he bowed once more before disappearing in another puff of black smoke.

Once Haruko disappeared, Tenkou sighed. "I never thought being the ruler of a universe would be so…_boring_. There's nothing to do but watch those baka seishi and onna and occasionally destroy a town or two." he waved his hand in the air, and a remote appeared and landed in his hand. "Lets see what else is on…" he muttered, flipping through channels on the magic mirror as if it were a TV. He stopped when he saw a 'My Little Pony' commercial. "Ooh, I _love_ those little pink ponies!#" he exclaimed in a girly voice, then he started to sing along with the 'My Little Pony' song.

#((IP - If you don't get this, refer back to chapter 10, where Sakura says, "What's next, a little pink pony?" (XD)))

Meanwhile, a young woman hidden in the shadows just outside the throne room watched Tenkou sing the 'My Little Pony' song and sweatdropped. _**Why**__ did I agree to go with this nutcase?_ She paused as a picture of a certain man's face appeared in her mind and she smiled, though the smile seemed more malicious than happy from her position in the shadows. _That's right, I did it for __**him**__…To be with him again…He __**will**__ be mine once more…I'll make sure of that._ The girl quietly retreated from her spot in the shadows.

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(_Back With Chichiri And Tasuki_)

"Dammit Chiri, there ain't _nothin_' out 'ere!" Tasuki exclaimed in frustration. He and Chichiri had been trying (for the last half hour) to find _some_ sort of animal they could have for dinner, but so far they were having no luck. "Can't'cha jus' use yer magic and sense fer an animal instead of us runnin' around in circles?!"

Chichiri sighed. "Fine, fine. It'll be an unnecessary waste of energy, but I suppose it couldn't hurt." he said, and concentrated. After a few seconds, his head shot up.

"What is it?! Find somethin'?!" Tasuki asked excitedly.

Chichiri nodded grimly. "Hai, demo it's not exactly the something you wanted, no da." He held out his hand and muttered a spell, and a shakujou appeared in his outstretched hand.

Tasuki unsheathed his tessen at the same time, getting the hint. " 'ow strong's 'e?"

"Very, probably. His ki was well masked, which means he must have some skill, no da." Chichiri said.

Suddenly, a black puff of smoke appeared a few feet away from them. They waited for the smoke to clear, and when it did, it revealed a young man with long black hair and black eyes. His hands were in a similar position Chichiri uses, and Chichiri noticed this just in time. He grabbed Tasuki and teleported away just as the man let out a huge ki blast. The two seishi landed on a nearby tree branch, and once Tasuki got his footing, he let loose a loud, "REKKA SHINEN!!"

Flames shot out of the metal tessen and towards the young man, but he'd been expecting that all along. He merely sidestepped the flames and shot out a ki blast. It hit the tree and knocked the two seishi to the ground. They quickly got up.

"Who th' hell're you?!" Tasuki exclaimed, his fangs fully visible as he growled at the young man.

"Hmm, I suppose I could tell you, seeing as you won't have any chance to pass it on. Ore wa Haruko, but you may refer to me as YOUR DEMISE!!" he exclaimed, shooting out another, larger, ki blast at the two seishi. The ki blast charged towards them at breakneck speed, and they both jumped in opposite directions to avoid getting hit, Chichiri dropping his shakujou in the process. Haruko smiled evilly, the ki blast wasn't meant to hit them anyway. No, it did exactly what it was supposed to do--it distracted them.

Chichiri quickly got up and rushed back to Tasuki's side, shakujou completely forgotten at this point. "Daijoubu ka, no da?" he asked as he helped Tasuki onto his feet.

"Hai, daijoubu, it didn't hit me. You?"

Chichiri nodded. "I'm fine."

"Sorry to break up your little check-up, but I believe you're forgetting something important." Haruko said in a mocking tone. The two seishi turned to see a huge black ball of ki already halfway towards them, and still continuing towards them, at breakneck speed once more. Only this time, it was too late to dodge it.

"Kuso!!" Tasuki exclaimed, and then it hit them. They both screamed out in surprise and pain, and within two seconds, their bodies disappeared from sight. Haruko smiled evilly. "Their bodies are gone…I don't feel their ki…perfect. Tenkou-sama shall be pleased." Once again, Haruko disappeared in a puff of black smoke.

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(_Back At Camp_)

Sakura's head shot up in alarm and she gasped. Hishigatsu had already returned with the firewood about a half hour ago, and they'd already finished setting up camp and getting the fire started. They were both waiting for the boys to come back, Sakura getting ready to prepare a meal just incase they hadn't found anything (which was most likely considering that they were gone for almost an hour now), when she felt it…or rather, _didn't_ feel it.

Hishigatsu heard her gasp and rushed over to her side. "Daijoubu ka?!" she asked urgently.

"Hai…_I'm_ fine…d-demo…" she trailed off, still looking like she was in shock.

"But what?" Hishigatsu asked.

Sakura lifted her head and looked Hishigatsu in the eye. "Hi-chan…I-I can't sense Chichiri-kun or Tasuki-kun's ki…i-it's like they just d-disappeared…w-what if they're…"

"Iie! Don't even _think_ things like that!" Hishigatsu exclaimed. She pulled Sakura up from her sitting position and exclaimed, "We're going to go look for them! Not to mention give them a piece of our minds, for making us wait so long!"

Sakura nodded, a faint smile brought back to her face, and the two girls ran off in the direction they remembered Chichiri and Tasuki heading off in.

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(_Meanwhile_)

Chichiri slowly opened his eyes and sat up, holding his head. "Where am I no da?" he muttered, looking around in confusion. All around him were_……trees, no da? Iie…_ "Iie…these aren't trees…it looks more like…grass…?"

He shrugged the thought off and looked around a bit more, finally spotting Tasuki, who was still unconscious. He ran over to Tasuki and shook him a few times to get him up.

Tasuki slowly opened his eyes and groaned. "Whoa…wha' hit me?" he muttered.

"A giant ball of ki, no da." Chichiri said, smiling teasingly. Tasuki lightly glared.

"Ya know what I meant." he said. Then he looked at himself in confusion. "Demo, why aren't I hurt?" then he looked at Chichiri and added, "Or you?"

Chichiri shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine, no da." he looked around. "But first we have to figure out where we are, no da…"

Tasuki looked around and gawked when he spotted a very familiar item. For some reason, he couldn't find his voice, so he frantically tugged on Chichiri's sleeve and pointed to the item that had him shell-shocked.

"D-D-D-Daa…" Chichiri said shakily, nearly falling down in surprise. But that was good compared to Tasuki, who nearly fainted as reality hit them.

"Dear Suzaku…that ki blast didn't _send_ us anywhere…i-it _shrunk_ us, no da!!" Chichiri exclaimed in surprise. "D-Demo, how do we know this isn't an illusion, no da?"

Tasuki pinched himself. "Itai! Okay, it's not an illusion!"

Chichiri sweatdropped. "Anou, I don't think tha--"

But Chichiri stopped mid-sentence at the sight of something else. Or should I say, _someone_ else.

"Dear Suzaku, if my shakujou didn't prove that we shrunk, than I'm sure this does no da…" Chichiri said quietly. Tasuki just looked up, his mouth hitting the ground in utter shock.

There, coming towards them, were Sakura and Hishigatsu. Thing was, _they_ were normal sized, so you could just guess what they must look like to both of the 3-or-so-inch-tall seishi.

"Holy shit…" Tasuki muttered. "And Hi-chan says she doesn't have anythin' up to--OW!"

Chichiri blushed and brought his fist back to his side. "Can you _please_ not do that no da?"

Tasuki let out a small "Heh heh" in reply.

Chichiri sighed. "Okay, so they're near us, now to get them to _notice_ us, no da."

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(_Meanwhile_)

"Chichiri-kun!"

"Tas-chan!"

The two girls walked around, calling the two seishi's names, but so far they didn't find anything.

Little did they know, they were getting closer and closer to said seishi.

Sakura sighed and was about to suggest to Hishigatsu that they go back to camp when she heard something.

"Matte Hi-chan. Did you hear something?" Sakura asked.

Hishigatsu shrugged. "No, why?"

"I could've sworn I heard Chichiri-kun…" Sakura trailed off.

Meanwhile, the two seishi nearly rejoiced when Sakura said that she'd heard Chichiri. They continued to call out to the two girls. "Sakura-chan, no da!"

"Oi Hi-chan no baka, down here!"

Now Hishigatsu perked up. "That's weird, I thought I heard Tasuki and Chichiri just now."

"Me too." Sakura said, surprised. "But if we both heard them, they must be _somewhere_ nearby, and if that were the case, then why don't they just come meet up with us?"

Hishigatsu shrugged, then grinned. "Hey, I know how we can find them!" Hishigatsu said happily.

"How?" Sakura asked.

"Osuwari!" Hishigatsu called out, and Sakura rolled her eyes.

(thud)

Chichiri chuckled quietly as Tasuki was pulled down to the ground via the beads of subjugation.

"That's weird, I heard the thud, but it sounded small, like it was far away or something." Hishigatsu said, shrugging.

Tasuki got up off of the ground. "Ya damn onna!! I'm gonna kill ya fer that!!"

"Ugh, I can hear you, but where the hell are you?!" Hishigatsu yelled, and the two seishi flinched and covered their ears, not being used to the sensitive hearing that came with having tiny eardrums. (XD)

"DON'T YELL (NO DA)!!" they both exclaimed, still covering their ears.

Hishigatsu was about to call out again when Sakura put her hand over Hishigatsu's mouth. The two seishi sighed in relief.

"I think I heard them say not to yell." Sakura explained, moving her hand. Hishigatsu nodded, though she was still confused.

"So how're we supposed to find them? You can't sense them, we can't see them, and we can barely _hear_ them!" Hishigatsu complained.

"Well, maybe if you weren't yelling so much, we'd be able to hear them better." Sakura pointed out.

Hishigatsu pouted, but nonetheless shut up.

"How about we split up and search this area? They're around here somewhere, though why they can't just come out is still beyond me." Sakura said, rolling her eyes.

Hishigatsu nodded. "Alright, we'll split up, but let's try not to go too far from each other, okay?"  
Sakura nodded and they both walked in opposite directions. Luckily for the seishi, Hishigatsu started walking towards the shakujou, thus towards them.

"Hey Sakura-chan, I found…something…" she trailed off in shock. She'd found the shakujou, but she hadn't expected what she found next to it. "S-Sak-kura-ch-chan!"

Sakura rushed over to Hishigatsu's side and automatically had the same reaction as Hishigatsu. "Ch-Chichiri-kun? T-Tasuki-kun?" she managed to get out, after a minute or two of gawking.

"Hai, finally, no da!" Chichiri exclaimed happily.

That was it for Sakura and Hishigatsu. Their eyes rolled up into their heads and they fell to the ground with a 'thud' right next to each other.

The two seishi sweatdropped. "Guess the shock was too much, no da."

"Now what?" Tasuki asked.

"We wait until they wake up, I suppose, no da."

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IP, WD, AS, Piksy, Sakura, Hishigatsu, Taka, Nuriko, and Suboshi - (all rolling on the floor laughing)

Everyone else - (laughing quietly)

Tasuki and Chichiri - (blushing out embarrassment)

Tasuki - Urusai! (catches Miaka trying to stifle her laughter) Aw c'mon, not you too Mi-chan! It's enough my own _koibito_ is laughin' 'er ass off, but not you _too!_

Miaka - G-Gomen Tasuki, Chichiri, but it was too FUNNY!! (bursts out laughing)

Chichiri - Daa…(groan) Just _how_ many chapters are you planning on dragging this out for, no da?

IP - Not telling! (n.n)

Chichiri - That's not good, no da. (sweatdrop)

Tasuki - Oi, Obake-chan, Okama-chan, Yo-Yo-boy, ya better stop laughin'!

Suboshi - (still laughing) Or what?

Tasuki - Or this! (takes out tessen) Rekka Shinen!! (fries Taka, Nuriko, and Suboshi)

Said three - Grr…(chase after Tasuki) GET BACK HERE FANG-BOY!!

Tasuki - (uses seishi-speed to out-run them)

Chiriko (who's been very quiet of late) - IP-san says that she would truly appreciate it if you took the time to share your opinions on this chapter with us. (kawaii smile)

IP - Arigatou Riko-kun, and also, try and keep that 'mysterious girl' in mind--she is one of the only things that actually _belongs_ in the plotline, and she _will_ appear later on. (n.n) 'kay, that's all I had to say. Jaa!


	16. Chapter 14 part 2

((IP - (TT.TT) Why am I doing this? _WHY?_ Only **one** person reviewed the last chapter! Curse my younger imagination and the influence of stupid movies...(grumblegrumble)))

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Okay, I don't own Fushigi Yuugi, yadda yadda yadda, now enjoy this chappie before Tasuki and Chichiri--well, mostly Tasuki--kill me! (runs off)

Tasuki - Get back here!! (chases after her)

IP - Oh come on! In the movie, the kids were, like, 1 millimeter tall! At least I made you both about 3 inches each!

Tasuki - THAT DOESN' CHANGE ANYTHIN' NOW GET BACK HERE AND GET RID OF THESE CHAPTERS!!

IP - **NEVER!!** (runs faster)

Chichiri - Daa, will someone _please_ stop this madness, no da?!

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

_**speech**_ speech inside the character's head that's not their own (NOT TELEPATHY)

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 14 - Honey, He Shrunk The Seishi! **Part 2**

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"AAAAAAAAAAHHH!!"

Only 10 minutes after the girls fainted, the two seishi found themselves in trouble (or rather, Tasuki found himself in trouble and poor Chichiri was somehow dragged into the whole mess (XP)).

They were now being chased off by a 'huge' (about their size, maybe a few centimeters smaller than them at most) pissed-off spider. sweatdrop

The two seishi ran and ducked for cover behind the first thing they saw, which was Sakura's outstretched arm from when she fainted.

The spider then started to climb over Sakura's arm, but luckily for the seishi, Sakura woke up at this point. She opened her eyes a tiny bit and used her telekinesis to send the unfortunate spider flying. "Damn bugs…" Sakura mumbled, as the two seishi sweatdropped. She opened her eyes fully and smiled at the two seishi, showing that now that the shock had passed, she was pretty amused with their situation. She sat up and stretched a little, and the two seishi unconsciously paled at the size difference. "Hmm, I've gotta say, that was the best sleep I've had in ages!" she said sarcastically.

Chichiri caught this bit of sarcasm easily. "Gomen nasai Sakura-chan, no da. We didn't mean to scare you two like that."

Sakura waved the apology off. "Don't worry about it Chichiri-kun." she said. She then used her powers to carefully lift the two seishi off of the ground and bring them up so they were at eye-level with her.

"So, mind telling me what the heck's going on? Starting with that spider, who seemed to be going after the two of you." she said, obvious amusement in her voice.

The two seishi blushed out of embarrassment, but more so Tasuki. Sakura looked at Chichiri and said sarcastically, "Okay, what'd Tasuki-kun do _this_ time?"

Tasuki growled and muttered a few colorful words under his breath, and Chichiri explained. "Well, this baka here got bored less than 10 minutes after you two, er, fainted, no da. So he decided to 'show off his strength even while at a disadvantage like this', as he called it, and he tossed around a few rocks, one of which hit a baby spider. The mother spider got mad at Tasuki-kun and started chasing him, and he ran to me for help--although I don't understand what he thought _I_ could've done--and then the spider started chasing _both_ of us, no da. But the worst part was, our powers wouldn't work, so we couldn't even defend ourselves, na no da! Er…da…I believe you know the rest from there, no da." he concluded, extremely embarrassed.

Sakura laughed as quietly as she could, trying not to be rude, but Hishigatsu (who woke up right before Chichiri started explaining and was feigning sleep to listen) burst out laughing, startling the two seishi and Sakura.

"Dammit Hi-chan no baka, stop laughin'!" Tasuki exclaimed, his face still a dark red out of embarrassment.

"Or what?" Hishigatsu asked, standing up and purposely towering over the two seishi, who once again paled at the size difference. Only difference was that _she_ would actually hurt them. Well, she'd hurt _Tasuki_, anyway. sweatdrop Seeing where this was going, Sakura used her power and quickly but carefully pulled Chichiri to where she was sitting and thus out of "harm's" way.

"Traitor!" Tasuki yelled at Chichiri's retreating form.

"It's not _my_ fault, no da!" Chichiri exclaimed, laughing at Tasuki's obviously-scared look.

Hishigatsu knelt down and grabbed Tasuki, holding him tight enough to scare the hell out of him, but not tight enough to crush him. _Oh, this has to be Tenkou's best blunder yet!_ she thought happily, making sure to keep an 'evil' sort of look on her face. "You're coming with me!" she said in a mock-evil voice, but she was unable to resist grinning at him. She then walked back to camp, leaving behind a sweatdropping Sakura and Chichiri.

"Daa…what was _that_ all about, no da?" Chichiri asked.

"I dunno--I'm pretty sure it has something to do with her evil and feminist side taking over her--but either way, something tells me we might be seeing some more crazy scenes like that in the near future." Sakura replied, sighing and shaking her head. She stood up and stretched again. "We should head back to camp too."

Sakura looked down at Chichiri and nearly burst out laughing. Chichiri was trying to figure out how to move his body while in the air and, needless to say, was failing miserably. Sakura couldn't help but at least laugh _lightly_, while trying not to offend Chichiri, as she knelt down. "Need a lift?" she offered, grinning at his outright embarrassment. _I know this is a mean thing to think, but he's so cute when he's embarrassed! _(.)

"Daa…w-would you mind, no da?" Chichiri asked sheepishly.

"If I minded, then would I have offered you in the first place?" Sakura pointed out. She moved her hand under Chichiri and relaxed her mind, allowing Chichiri to fall onto her hand, and stood back up. Chichiri paled and immediately sat down so he wouldn't fall, and Sakura laughed. "I'm not gonna drop you, don't worry."

"Somehow that doesn't exactly calm my nerves, no da." Chichiri muttered, blushing and trying to ignore the awkwardness of the situation.

Sakura carefully started walking back to camp, thinking. _I wonder what happened to them…I guess it was probably a spell of some sort, but what happens if it doesn't wear off? And how are we gonna continue our search for the remaining seishi with Chichiri-kun and Tasuki-kun, like, three inches tall?!_ she inaudibly sighed._ I know we shouldn't continue on with them like this, but who knows when Tenkou will strike again? It's enough that we've let down our guard of late, and look where it got us! And Chichiri even mentioned that they can't use their powers…_ she sighed again._ Looks like this is gonna be more trouble than I originally thought._

Chichiri looked up at Sakura, sensing her distress even without being able to use his powers. "Daijoubu ka, no da?"

Sakura looked down at him and smiled. "Yeah, just thinking."

"About what, no da?"

Sakura sighed. "About what we should do now that we're in this…situation. Do we continue on, or do we wait?"

"Wait for what? You know that whatever spell did this to us most likely won't wear off; it'll have to be removed, no da--trust me, Tenkou has to make our lives as difficult as possible, so there's no way it'd be that easy. So we can't just sit around and wait for Haruko to show up, that's just giving Tenkou the advantage, na no da." Chichiri said, frowning.

"Anou, who's 'Haruko'?" Sakura asked.

"Oh, right, I didn't have a chance to explain what happened to us, no da. Well, I guess it would be better to wait until we get back to camp to explain it, na no da." Chichiri said, and Sakura nodded.

"Demo, are you sure that you wanna continue like this?" Sakura asked, and Chichiri nodded, sighing.

"We have to, no matter how difficult this makes our journey now. We've wasted too much time already, no da." Chichiri said.

"Alright, but guess that means that _I_ have to look after _you_ now, ne?" Sakura said jokingly, but Chichiri sighed in frustration.

"That's why I'm worried about continuing; Tasuki and I will be unable to help you girls at all, no da. We'll probably wind up needing protection _ourselves_, and I hate to have to ask that of you, no da." Chichiri said. What he received in response was Sakura lightly (and carefully) poking him, startling him.

"Chichiri-kun no baka! How many times have I told you that we can handle ourselves just fine! And don't worry about needing protection, first of all, I don't think that Hi-chan'll let Tasuki-kun out of her sight for very long, so you don't have to worry about him. And second of all, anyone who wants to get to you will have to get through me! Actually, they'll have to get through a very _pissed off_ me if they try to hurt you." Sakura said, smiling reassuringly. "So relax, 'kay? Hi-chan and I'll take care of things for now, and we'll make sure to get you two back to normal as fast as possible!"

"Arigatou Sakura-chan, no da." Chichiri said.

"Alright, with that said-and-done, I'd better get us back to camp before Hi-chan decides to kill Tasuki-kun!" Sakura said in a light tone, grinning. She sped up a bit and thought back to what she said. _It's true…even the prospect of someone hurting Chichiri, both now and even when he's his regular size, makes my blood boil. I wonder…is this need to make sure he's safe…is that love? D-Demo, he's always overprotective of me…does that mean that he loves me too? Wait, why did I say 'too'? Ah, who am I kidding?! I'm in love with Chichiri, but that doesn't mean that I deserve him…then again, that's probably what he's thinking too…ugh, I think I'll just have to talk to Hi-chan about this later or something. _she inconspicuously sweatdropped, and focused on getting back to camp.

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(_A Few Minutes Later_)

Sakura and Chichiri made it back to camp in time to prevent yet another lover's spat (would probably would've ended up being more lethal than normal, given the situation), and Sakura set to making dinner. While Sakura worked on dinner, Chichiri and Tasuki explained to the two girls about what happened to them, from when Chichiri first sensed Haruko up to when the girls found them. By the time Chichiri and Tasuki finished their story, the dinner was almost done, and the two seishi and Hishigatsu drooled from the fact that they were hungry, and the delicious aroma of Sakura's cooking. After a few more minutes, the dinner was finished cooking, a simple meal of rice and vegetables mixed in with other flavorings and to top it off, Sakura had found curry buried in the food supply bags, and had cooked that and sprinkled it on the rice, but somehow Sakura had managed to make a simple meal like that smell--and taste--like a meal fit for a king…or emperor, rather. (n.n") The two girls sat on the ground on opposite sides of the fire, a bowl and chopsticks in each of their hands. Next to Hishigatsu sat a bag with a few water bottles contributed by Miaka and Taka, before they'd went back to their world just a few hours ago.

"Itadakimasu!" both girls said, digging into their food right away. The two seishi stood on the ground not too far away, staring at the food longingly. Both their stomachs growled simultaneously.

What are we gonna do about them? Sakura asked Hishigatsu, looking up from her bowl slightly.

Hishigatsu shrugged without looking up. I don't know what you wanna do about Chichiri, but I say we let Tasuki starve.

Hi-chan… Sakura said threateningly.

Fine, fine. What are we supposed to give them then? We can't exactly give them a bowl of rice and chopsticks you know.

Yes, I know. But what _can_ we give them?

How about we give Tasuki a nice big bowl of soup, and watch him try and eat it!

Sakura couldn't help it, she burst out laughing, especially when she visualized a 3-inch-tall Tasuki leaning over the edge of a bowl trying to drink hot soup, and then falling in and yelling so many curses that even most bandits would probably wind up blushing and covering their ears. Hishigatsu joined Sakura in her laugher. "You just tried to picture what that would look like right?" she asked while continuing to laugh.

Sakura sent her visual to Hishigatsu via the telepathic link, and Hishigatsu laughed even harder. "That would be hilarious! We really oughta do that!"

"Hi-chan…" Sakura said threateningly once more, only this time she was still laughing.

"Oi, what th' hell're ya talkin' about?!" Tasuki demanded, stomping up to Sakura (because she was closer). "I'll bet you two're plannin' somethin'! Iya, I _know_ it!"

His only response was to be sent backwards lightly by Sakura's telekinesis. He landed on his butt right back where he started, and Hishigatsu laughed even harder. Sakura and Chichiri laughed a bit more quietly, but nonetheless joined in with Hishigatsu. "Grr, fine, I don't need t' eat or nothin', jus' leave me alone!" Tasuki stormed off to the bags (the ones that were away from the horses, of course), sat down, and sulked.

Chichiri walked up to Sakura. "So, what _were_ you laughing about, no da?"

Sakura shook her head. "Nan demo nai, you wouldn't get it anyway." she lied. _Somehow I figure he wouldn't find it as funny as we did. _(XP)

Sakura noticed that Chichiri had to look up when he was talking to them (and she was getting tired of looking down), so she used her telekinesis to lift Chichiri onto her right shoulder, seeing as he was already on her right side. "Better?" she asked, and he nodded gratefully, his face a bit pink even with the mask on. Sakura and Hishigatsu continued to eat their meals, but Sakura stopped when she heard Chichiri's stomach growl. _I guess I could try giving him some of my food, seeing as I can't think of anything else._ Sakura decided. She switched her chopsticks into her left hand (she's ambidextrous), picked up a few grains of rice in her chopsticks, and moved the chopsticks in front of Chichiri. "I know you're hungry, so you can have some of my dinner…anou, that is, if you, eto, if you don't mind me, you know, feeding you like this…" she stumbled, blushing lightly. Chichiri blushed out of embarrassment, but agreed gratefully. "The only reason Tasuki-kun said that he doesn't want to eat is because he feels that he's already lost most of his dignity, and he feels that something like this will completely destroy his dignity, no da." Chichiri explained Tasuki's earlier behavior while rolling his eyes. "Despite what Tasuki-kun thinks, just because I'm a monk doesn't mean that I don't have dignity. I just, unlike him, know when to set it aside for something as important as eating, na no da."

Hishigatsu rolled her eyes. "Yeah, that's Tasuki for you. A 'man'." she said sarcastically.

Sakura smiled and moved the chopsticks a little closer to Chichiri, so he wouldn't have to lean to eat.

"Anou…it's a bit hot…no da…" Chichiri said, embarrassed. _Ugh, I feel like a little baby, no da! I can't even eat a meal on my own! I feel so…useless, I guess. On top of being shrunken, I don't even have my powers, I can't do anything on my own…yet… why is Sakura-chan not bothered by having to take care of me like this, no da? Even what she said before…and she only acts this way to me…demo…doushite?_

Sakura shrugged her free shoulder and smiled. "Don't worry about it, it's my fault. I like to eat my food hot, gomen." she gently blew on the food until it cooled down, and placed it back in front of Chichiri.

"Arigatou, no da." he said, before taking a bite of the rice and smiling. "Daa…"

Sakura chuckled. "I see you like it." she stated, smiling.

Chichiri just continued to happily eat the rice placed in front of him.

_He's just so cute! _(.)_ I have a feeling I'm gonna enjoy having them like this, as long as we don't run into any danger._ Sakura thought happily. She continued to feed Chichiri, happy to be helping him in some way, and also blushing about how close he was to her. Meanwhile, Chichiri was just oblivious to everything as he happily ate Sakura's delicious meal.

Hishigatsu looked up from her meal and at the two, and smiled. _I don't get it, they'd make the most perfect_--_not to mention the cutest_--_couple, yet they deny themselves that happiness. When we get Tasuki and Chichiri back to their normal sizes, I am __**so**__ hooking them up, whether they like it or not!_ She then decided to try Sakura's feeding-idea on Tasuki, but of course she knew it wouldn't be as easy as it was for Sakura. She sighed._ Why does she get the easy man to work with and I get Mr. Stubborn?_ She picked up a water bottle and threw it to Sakura, who caught it without looking up, and walked over to where Tasuki was with her bowl.

"Thirsty?" Sakura asked, and Chichiri nodded, but looked curiously at the water bottle.

"How am I supposed to drink out of that, no da? It's too big!" he said, still blushing from embarrassment.

Sakura smiled. "Stand up, and I'll help you." she said. She opened the water bottle as Chichiri stood up, confused.

"Okay, we'll just put the edge of the opening of the bottle to your mouth, and I'll pour controlled amounts of water out, so you don't choke." Sakura explained, trying her best to hide her amusement. She moved the bottle so Chichiri could put his mouth to it, and she used her telekinesis to slowly pour tiny amounts of water down to the opening of the bottle. Once Chichiri signaled he was done, and moved his mouth away from the edge of the opening, Sakura smiled innocently and poured a bit of water on Chichiri's head before taking the bottle and drinking some of the water herself. Chichiri glared at her playfully as he sat back down, shaking some of the water off of his head. Sakura just gave him another innocent smile in return, and held up more rice as a 'peace offering', which he eagerly accepted.

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(_A Few Minutes Later_)

After finishing half of what was left in Sakura's bowl, Chichiri sighed contently. "Did I ever tell you that you're a great cook, no da?" he said, grinning.

Sakura grinned back. "Arigatou, but did anyone tell _you_ that you have the potential to rival Miaka-san's black hole of a stomach?"

"Hey, I stopped, didn't I, no da?" Chichiri said, chuckling. Sakura smiled and rolled her eyes, standing up slowly so she wouldn't accidentally knock Chichiri off. She walked over to where Hishigatsu and Tasuki were, by the bags, and lifted Chichiri off of her shoulder and back onto the ground using her telekinesis. "Lemme guess--Tasuki-kun refusing to eat?" Sakura asked, looking at her getting-angrier-by-the-second friend.

"Ugh, Tasuki, you are just so STUBBORN!" Hishigatsu exclaimed through gritted teeth, and Sakura noted that it was taking all of her willpower to not take the bowl of rice and throw it at Tasuki.

"Tasuki-kun, can you please eat? Chichiri-kun ate!" Sakura pointed out, and Tasuki rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, 'cuz he's got no dignity! I ain't havin' some onna feed me like I'm some sort've baby!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"I do too have dignity, no da!" Chichiri protested, going chibi and glaring at the fiery bandit. "Just because I _ate_ doesn't mean I don't have dignity! And just so you know, you're missing out on a good meal if you don't eat, no da!"

"Not to mention that the human body can't go very long without food, and seeing as _your_ body is so much smaller than a normal human body right now, you could die _tomorrow_ if you don't eat for all we know!" Sakura pointed out, and Tasuki paled.

"Grr…fine…" Tasuki said, grumbling. Then he blushed. "But at least go away 'r somethin'!"

Chichiri and Sakura laughed. "Fine, I'll go…" Sakura said, and she bent down and picked Chichiri up quickly before continuing. "…and I'm taking you with me!" she ran off into the woods laughing. "Don't take too long!" she called out before disappearing out of sight.

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"D-Daa…Don't do that, no da!!" Chichiri exclaimed, still a bit startled from the quick pick-up.

Sakura just laughed.

"What exactly are you doing anyway, no da?" Chichiri asked. "Well, besides going away so Tasuki-kun can eat." he rolled his eyes at the last part.

"I'm kidnapping you." Sakura said, moving her face a bit closer to his and giving him a flirtatious smirk. Just as she'd thought, his whole face turned a bright red, even through the mask, and Sakura couldn't help but burst out laughing, trying to muffle her laughter by laughing into her free hand. Chichiri just blushed further.

"Daa…that wasn't nice, no da…" Chichiri said, still embarrassed.

Sakura stopped laughing and smiled at him. "Gomen, I wanted to see how you'd react." she said, her voice tinged with amusement. _Heh, I never thought I'd catch myself acting like Nuriko, but he __**so**__ set himself up for that one._ (n.n) _Book 7 déjà vu. _her smile turned into a small grin.

"Alright…d-demo…can you…anou…put me down now, no da?" Chichiri asked meekly.

"What's the matter? Scared of heights?" she teased, smiling. "Besides, lets say I _did_ put you down. First of all, you wouldn't be able to keep up with me. And second of all, what if I accidentally…uh…yeah, I think you get it." she sweatdropped as she saw Chichiri's face pale even more.

"D-Daa…I think I'll stay up here then…no da…" he said nervously, and Sakura laughed quietly.

She continued walking for a while until she came upon a small clearing, with just grass and a small pond. She smiled. "We can wait here, I guess."

Chichiri sulked. "If I knew this was here, we wouldn't be in this situation, no da." he said, sighing.

"Don't worry about it! What's done is done, and there's nothing anyone can do about it." Sakura said, bending down and gently releasing Chichiri. She laid down next to him on her back, her arms behind her head, and closed her eyes, relaxing. Chichiri walked up so that he was next to her face. _I've never really noticed before, but Sakura-chan is very beautiful…And not just her appearance, she's a good person overall…_

Sakura opened one eye and smiled. "And what are _you_ looking at?" she asked teasingly, and he blushed for what was probably the millionth time that day.

"N-Nothing…no da…" Chichiri said, sitting down quickly and looking away just as quickly. Sakura smiled and closed her eye again, and Chichiri followed suit, laying down and closing his eye behind his mask. The two of them stayed in that position for a while until Sakura opened her eyes and turned to face Chichiri.

"Hey Ch--" but she stopped mid-sentence and smiled. It seemed that Chichiri had fallen asleep in the few minutes that they were laying there. _He must've been tired. I'll wait until Hi-chan calls me before going back._

She waited a few more minutes until she heard Hishigatsu reaching out to her through the telepathic link Sakura set up between them, saying that they could come back. Sakura quietly sat up and used her telekinesis to lift Chichiri's sleeping body into her hands. She slowly and carefully walked back to camp, making sure not to wake him up.

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Tasuki - I'M STILL GONNA KILL YA!! (has his tessen out and is (still) chasing IP)

Kouji - (walks in holding a copy of this chapter and the chapter before this) Naa, IP-san, wha's this?

IP - (is still running from Tasuki) Just read it! (grins)

Tasuki - (pales) Iie, don' read it! It's…anou…porn!

Kouji - (grins)

Tasuki - (O.O) HENTAI!! What kind've guy likes porn?!

Kouji - (-.-) A _normal_ guy. (starts reading)

IP - (grins)

Tasuki - NOOOOOOOOO!! (attempts to stop Kouji from reading it)

Kouji - (dodges all of his attempts at grabbing the papers without looking up from reading) (finishes reading and starts laughing uncontrollably)

Tasuki - Grr…STOP LAUGHIN'!! (starts chasing Kouji with his tessen)

Kouji - (runs away while continuing to laugh)

IP - Anyway, hope you all liked this chappie, and all of it's Sakura-Chichiri WAFF-y glory! Please R&R, _especially_ 'cuz I'm off the hook for now! (;D)

Tasuki - NO YER NOT! I'M COMIN' AFTER YA AFTER I'M DONE WI' **THIS** BAKA!

IP - Just ignore the angry red-head and R&R, folks. (n.n")

((IP - Gaaaaah, will _someone_ please review, and tell me that I'm not making myself look like a total idiot right now? Even if you're lying, I don't care! Just to get me through these chapters, so I can get back to the actual story! (.)))


	17. Chapter 14 part 3

((IP - Alright, since it's been a while since I've last updated, I'm just going to post the last 3 parts of this chapter, and that way we can _finally_ move on to the better chapters.))

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Okay, I'll say this quick. I don't own Fushigi Yuugi or anything made by Yuu Watase, but I do own my OCs and anything else my crazy mind happens to come up with. (n.n)

Kouji - (is still laughing and running at the same time)

Chichiri - (is blushing to his roots out of embarrassment)

IP - (hugs Chichiri) Relax, no one's laughing at you! They're all laughing at Tasuki! (;D)

Tasuki - AND HOW IS THAT SUPPOSED T' BE BETTER?!

Chichiri - Daa…the quicker you read this chapter, than the closer we'll be to getting back to normal SO FOR THE LOVE OF SUZAKU START READING, NO DA!! (TT.TT)

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

_**speech**_ speech inside the character's head that's not their own (NOT TELEPATHY)

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 14 - Honey, He Shrunk The Seishi! **Part 3**

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(_The Next Day_)

Chichiri opened his eyes and sweatdropped when he found that not only was he in the pocket of Sakura's bag, but he had also somehow managed to push himself all the way to the bottom of the pocket in his sleep, which ended up with him in an extremely odd position that left him a bit sore. "Wonder how I pulled that off, no da…" he muttered, as he struggled to lift himself up enough to see outside the pocket, and after a minute or so, he finally managed to get his head over the top of the pocket so he could see. He was surprised to see both girls already up and running around packing up camp. _Weird, I've never been one to sleep in, no da._ He shrugged the thought off and tried to get himself out of the pocket without bothering the girls. But his foot got caught on the inside of the pocket and he instead fell face-first towards the ground.

But instead of hitting the ground, he felt a sort of pressure above his waist, and looked back to see that the pressure was two fingers, one on each side of his body. He looked up to see Sakura smiling back at him, and he blushed out of embarrassment under his mask, quickly putting two and two together and realizing that Sakura had caught him.

"Ohayo to you too, Chichiri-kun." she said, laughing a little. "You could have just asked me or Hi-chan to help you get out, you know." With her other hand, she pulled down the pocket so Chichiri could get his foot out, and then she put him down.

"A-Arigatou, no da." he said, still embarrassed.

"Don't worry about it, and don't be so reluctant to ask us for help." Sakura said, and Chichiri looked down at the ground and sighed as her words hit home.

"I just don't want to be more of a problem to you two than I already am like this." Chichiri said, and Sakura laughed. Chichiri looked up at her in confusion.

"Trust me, if anyone here is being a problem, it's Tasuki-kun, not you." she said, rolling her eyes.

"I second that!" Hishigatsu added, still packing the last of the stuff.

Sakura rolled her eyes again, turning to face Hishigatsu. "Of course you'd say that Hi-chan, you're only, what, his _girlfriend?_" she said sarcastically.

"Well, it's the truth!"

Sakura and Chichiri sweatdropped. "One wonders how they managed to stay together at _all_, let alone this long." Sakura muttered, and Chichiri nodded in agreement.

"Oh, that's right!" Sakura said, suddenly remembering something. She turned back to Chichiri. "I wanted to ask you what we should do about the horses…I mean, we're not gonna be using all of them, and it's gonna be hard to drag around four horses, considering Hi-chan and I don't know how to ride by ourselves. But I didn't wanna leave them behind either…I mean, what if someone steals them or they run off or something?"

Chichiri thought for a minute before replying. "You should leave them behind, no da. They're the palace's best-trained horses, so they won't run off, and there really isn't anyone around here for them to be stolen by, unless we get unlucky enough to have a wandering merchant or a bandit pass by here, na no da."

"So we should just leave them all?" Sakura asked, and Chichiri shook his head.

"We need to take the one with the supplies, the others we can leave behind. We can contact Houki-sama to send someone to come retrieve them if anything, no da. Or if Tasuki-kun and I get back to normal and we're not too far from here, we can head back and get them ourselves, no da." Chichiri said.

Sakura nodded. "Alright, sounds good. And another thing I wanted to ask, do you want me to go back and get your shakujou? I'm pretty sure I remember where it is, and if you need it…"

"Iie, no da. I obviously won't be using it right now, and I can always get another one, so there's no need for you to carry around that extra weight, no da. On that note, try not to overpack the supply horse, no da." Chichiri said. "Leave behind anything that isn't really necessary with the other horses; it can be picked up along with the horses later on, no da."

" 'Kay. Now we need to figure out how we're gonna carry you two around…" Sakura said.

"Oi Sakura-chan! I think I have an idea! C'mere!" Hishigatsu said happily, and Sakura got up and walked over to her, confused. But her confused look turned into a grin, which made Chichiri both nervous and confused at the same time.

"Yeah, that'll work, it's big enough to hold both of them." Sakura said, nodding. Hishigatsu then ran off holding something in her hand, though what it was Chichiri couldn't tell because she had her back to him.

Sakura walked back to Chichiri's side and knelt down, trying to stop grinning but failing.

"Alright, what did she come up with that's got you grinning like that, no da?" Chichiri questioned, walking up to where Sakura was kneeling and looking up at her with a mock-accusing look.

"It's nothing, really." Sakura said. And then to answer his unspoken question, she added, "Well, I'm sure that Tasuki-kun is going to mind more than you, but then again, when _doesn't_ he mind?"

Before Chichiri could respond to this, a muffled and sleepily-slurred, "Wha? Whazzat? Di' some'ne say m' name?" came from the pocket, followed quickly by a, "WHAT TH' HELL?! WHERE TH' HELL'M I?! LEMME OUT!!"

Sakura and Chichiri sweatdropped. Sakura leaned over and opened the top of the pocket. "(--") Tasuki-kun, you can stop yelling now." Sakura said in a flat tone, and Tasuki's head popped up and once he realized where he was, he sweatdropped. "Heh heh…my bad."

"Jeez Tasuki, you make enough noise to wake the dead." Hishigatsu said, walking over to Sakura, Chichiri and Tasuki. "I heard you all the way from the other side of camp."

Hishigatsu gave what appeared to be a red disk to Sakura, who smiled.

Chichiri walked around Sakura to get a better view of what the girls were actually holding, and sweatdropped when he saw Hishigatsu holding a jar a bit taller than himself and wide enough to Tasuki and himself with room to spare, and Sakura holding what he now figured was the lid. "Daa…don't tell me that _that's_ what you girls came up with, no da."

"What, too cliché?" Sakura asked sarcastically, rolling her eyes. "I didn't see _you_ thinking of anything." Then she turned her attention back to the lid. She concentrated, and soon there were a bunch of tiny holes all over the top of the lid, and two slightly bigger holes in the middle. She then dug through the bigger pocket of her bag and quickly pulled out a necklace with a heart-shaped pendant on it. She unhooked the necklace, took off the pendant, put the pendant back in her bag, and strung the necklace through the two holes in the center of the lid. Hishigatsu frowned.

"Hey, how come _you_ get to hold 'em?" she asked.

"(--) Look at your shirt, then look at the bottom of the jar." Sakura said, and Hishigatsu quickly put two and two together and blushed. (Hint: She's got a tight V-neck on, and it's a clear jar)

"Point taken." she said, sweatdropping and blushing slightly.

"WILL SOMEONE EXPLAIN WHAT TH' HELL'S GOIN' ON?!" a confused Tasuki exclaimed. Sakura lifted him out of the pocket using her telekinesis before speaking.

"Well, we're leaving now, so we need a way to carry you around."

Hishigatsu picked up from here. "So I came up with the ingenious idea of…this!" she held out the jar, grinning, and Tasuki paled.

"Aw, hell no! I'm not gonna be carried around in a frickin' _bottle_!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"It's not a bottle, it's a jar. And yes, you _are_ gonna be carried around in here, whether you like it or not." Hishigatsu said. "Now, either you go in the easy way or the hard way."

"I'm not goin' in at all!" Tasuki exclaimed, but instantly regretted it as Hishigatsu picked him up by the back of his shirt.

"Hard way it is!" Hishigatsu said, grinning even more. She literally dropped Tasuki into the jar.

"() Itai…damn bossy wimmen…" Tasuki muttered.

Hishigatsu turned to a sweatdropping Chichiri and held out the jar. "Well Chichiri-kun? You doing this the easy way or the hard way?"

Sakura rolled her eyes. "The hard way." she said sarcastically. "What do you _think_ he'd choose?"

She took the jar from Hishigatsu, and carefully lifted Chichiri into the jar using her telekinesis, but instead of putting him down, she also lifted Tasuki up. She then brought the jar to the lid, which was now hanging from the necklace around her neck, and spun the jar until it locked. Then she carefully put the two boys down and stood up, holding the jar in place with her telekinesis so they wouldn't get thrown around. "Ready to go?" she asked Hishigatsu, who nodded and also stood up.

"We're only taking the horse with the supplies, right?" Hishigatsu checked, and Sakura nodded. "Alrighty, let's hit the road!"

After a small debate, it was decided that Hishigatsu would be in charge of leading the horse, but in exchange she'll get to stay in her ghost form and float the whole way. So after making sure that they had everything, and that the horses were all fed and properly tied up, they set off.

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(_Four Hours Later_)

"Are we stoppin' yet?"

"Iie Tasuki-kun, we're not stopping yet." Sakura replied for what seemed like the hundredth time. She was slowly but surely losing her patience with the fiery seishi, who was going on and on about how he wanted to stop and get out of the jar and how his feet hurt from standing up--when there was room to sit down, mind you--and how he was hungry and tired and--yeah, I think you get the point. (sweatdrop)

Chichiri tried to help Sakura by attempting to calm down Tasuki, but to no avail. If anything, that made Tasuki try even _harder_ to get Sakura to stop so he could get out. Chichiri wasn't as stupid as Tasuki, he noticed that Sakura's patience was wearing thin, and if he looked down, he could see the clenching and unclenching of Sakura's hands at her side, a tell-tale sign that she was getting pissed.

"Are we stoppin' _yet_?!" Tasuki asked yet again, and Chichiri gulped when he saw her body become eerily relaxed.

She stopped walking and wordlessly grabbed the jar in one hand, lifting Chichiri (and only Chichiri) up telekinetically before spinning the jar open, thus spinning Tasuki along with it. Chichiri winced as he noticed that she was spinning it extra fast on purpose. Then she all but shot him out of the jar telekinetically, leaving him floating in the air as she started walking again. "Oi Hi-chan, take your boyfriend! I don't know _how_ the _**hell**_ you put up with him!"

Hishigatsu grinned evilly as she flew over to where Tasuki was left floating. He gulped and frantically attempted to move back to Sakura. "M-Matte! Gomen nasai! **Don't leave me with her!!**"

"You should've thought of that _before_." Sakura replied, not even turning around to see what became of Tasuki.

Chichiri gulped, looked up at Sakura, who was still holding the jar in her hand and his body in the air, and worried that she might take her remaining anger out on him now that Tasuki was gone. But Sakura just looked down at him and smiled.

"Thank Suzaku, I can finally hear myself think!" she said. Then seeing Chichiri's face she rolled her eyes. "I'm not mad anymore, so you can calm down. I was hardly mad in the first place. Annoyed, but not really mad."

Chichiri nodded, relieved.

"So, do you wanna come out of the jar for a bit? It's only fair that since Tasuki-kun's out, then you can come out too, I don't mind." Sakura said.

"Are you sure you don't mind, no da?" Chichiri asked. Sakura answered his question by carefully lifting him out of the jar and onto her shoulder with her telekinesis, and then she closed the jar again and left it hanging around her neck.

At first Chichiri was worried about sitting so high up while she was moving, but when he felt her telekinesis gently supporting him from both in front and behind him, he relaxed. Sakura smiled and turned her head a bit to look at him. "You okay with sitting over here?"

Chichiri smiled back and nodded. "Hai, arigatou, no da."

Sakura continued walking, the two of them staying in comfortable silence. But as you all should know by now, the word 'silence' doesn't exist when you're traveling with Tasuki and Hishigatsu.

Yup, said two had started bickering yet again. Bet you didn't expect that one. (--")

Sakura and Chichiri sighed simultaneously. "Will they _ever_ grow up?" Sakura muttered.

"Doubt it, no da." Chichiri replied. He leant back a bit on his hands and looked up. "On another note, at least the weather's been good of late, no da. That's _one_ stroke of good luck we've had! (n.n)"

Sakura laughed. "Careful, if Tenkou hears you he'll probably send down a blizzard." she said, rolling her eyes. Then she looked up as well. "I'm just glad he's been too stupid to think of slowing us down weather-wise. The sun feels good, and there's a nice breeze…it's too bad we have to keep going all day, or else I'd wanna just lay down in a big grassy field and take a nice nap."

Chichiri nodded sleepily. "A nap really does sound good right about now, no da."  
"Well, the faster we move, the faster we get to stop and take that nap, ne?" Sakura said, grinning. "Too bad the two red-headed slowpokes back there can't seem to take time away from their arguments to see that."

Sakura quickened her pace, then turned around so she was walking backward.

"Daa! That's dangerous, no da!" Chichiri exclaimed nervously, but she ignored him.

"Oi Hi-chan! Hurry it up! It's a nice day, I don't want to spend all of it walking at a snail's pace!" Sakura called out, careful not to be too loud for Chichiri's sake, before turning back around.

Sakura and Chichiri once again stayed in a comfortable silence until Sakura heard Chichiri's breathing slow down a bit. Curious, she turned her head a tiny bit to look at him, and when she saw him, she rolled her eyes. _Honestly, either Chichiri's very relaxed around me, or I'm just a boring person._ Turns out that Chichiri, once again, fell asleep. _I wonder why he's so tired of late. Maybe it has to do with how his body was shrunk, maybe it's just not used to the change yet or something._

She felt him start to fall forward in his sleep, and gently held him in place with her telekinesis. _It can't be comfortable sleeping while sitting up like that…_ she thought, then she smiled as she got an idea. She carefully changed the position of Chichiri's body and moved him over without him waking up, and she smiled when she heard his quiet snores, meaning that he'd fallen into a deep sleep. She felt him move in his sleep, and when he stopped moving, she blushed but continued walking nonetheless, making sure to be careful not to wake him up.

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(_A Few Hours Later_)

Chichiri slowly drifted back to consciousness, but he kept his eyes shut, not wanting to get up just yet. _Matte…when was I laying down in the first place no da?_ Curious, he opened his eyes, turned bright red, and sat up quickly. "Daa?!" he exclaimed, and Sakura winced, as he had just exclaimed that very loudly right near her ear.

"Yeah, ohayo to you too." she said. "Or rather, konbanwa."

Chichiri looked up at the sky and saw that the sun was already setting. "Daa?! How long was I asleep, no da?!"

"About five hours." Sakura said. "You were out cold, you feeling alright?"

Chichiri nodded. "Hai…just tired. Demo…anou…did I…" he stuttered, blushing.

Sakura laughed. "I moved you, if that's what you're trying to ask. You almost fell off when you were sleeping sitting up, and I figured that it couldn't be very comfortable to be sleeping sitting up with nothing to lean back on. So I laid you down instead." then she smirked teasingly. "But you moved yourself in your sleep, and wound up using my neck as a pillow."

Now Chichiri turned crimson, but before he could start to apologize, Sakura added (with a tiny blush), "I didn't mind though, so you don't have to apologize." she grinned. "What you _do_ have to apologize for, though, is for leaving me to deal with those two baka back there by myself!"

Chichiri smiled and shook his head. "I don't get it. Why aren't you mad, no da?"

She smiled. "Because I told you already, I didn't mind. Besides, you fell into a deep sleep the minute you repositioned yourself, so I figured you were comfortable and I didn't wanna move you. Although I think you owe me for putting up with both Hi-chan and Tasuki-kun, and with your snoring!"

"D-Da?! I don't snore, no da!"

"Yes you do."

"No I don't, no da!"

"Yes you do!"

"No I don't!"

"Yes!"

"No!"  
They both stopped when they heard Hishigatsu and Tasuki burst out laughing from behind them. Sakura turned around to see Hishigatsu and Tasuki practically rolling on the floor laughing.

"You two're starting to sound like us!" Hishigatsu exclaimed.

"Yeah, it's good t' see th' two most mature've th' group arguin' like a bunch've kids!" Tasuki said, grinning teasingly.

Sakura and Chichiri both blushed out of embarrassment.

"So what were you two arguing about anyway?" Hishigatsu asked.

Sakura grinned evilly. "Oh, nothing much. Just the fact that Chichiri-kun doesn't wanna admit that he snores."

Chichiri blushed even more. "I DON'T SNORE, NO DA!!"

Hishigatsu and Tasuki burst out laughing once more. "Not like I'd be able t' hear 'im ova my own snorin', so I can't help here." Tasuki said.

"And I can't hear him over Tasuki's snoring, so I can't help either." Hishigatsu said teasingly, and Tasuki playfully glared at her.

"Very funny koi, y' know damn well that ya snore just as loud as me." Tasuki said, which of course started another bickering session. Sakura turned back around and quickened her pace, sweatdropping.

Once they were out of earshot, Chichiri half-exclaimed, half-whined, "Why did you have to go and tell them that, no da?!"

Sakura grinned. " 'Cuz she asked."

Chichiri glared and punched the side of her neck playfully. "You're evil, no da. You know that Tasuki-kun's not gonna let me live that down, na no da."

Sakura smiled. "Hmm, I thought I felt something tap my neck, must've been the wind." she said teasingly. _Now I see why Hi-chan teases Tasuki-kun so much, it's actually pretty fun! _Her smile escalated into a teasing grin.

Chichiri stuck his tongue out at Sakura. "And I thought you were the _nice_ one, no da!"

"Oh trust me, I _am_ the nice one." Sakura said, rolling her eyes. Chichiri sweatdropped and nodded.

"Yeah, you're right, no da."

They both stayed in silence for a while until Sakura spoke up, frowning. "Hey Chichiri-kun, if I--" but she cut herself off and shook her head. "Nevermind. Gomen."

Chichiri looked at her curiously but didn't say anything. _This is the second time she's cut herself off from telling me something…I won't press her to tell me, but I hope that she can come to trust me enough to tell me what's bothering her._

Sakura bit her bottom lip in frustration. _I can't believe I was about to…_ she left her thought hanging and sighed._ I know I trust him, demo…I __**will**__ tell him. I will. Just…not yet…_

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(_About One Hour Later_)

The four finally stopped from their day-long trek--actually, it was only a trek for Sakura, seeing as she was the only one walking, but you get the point (sweatdrop)--and set up camp. This time Tasuki ate without much of a problem, but he still wouldn't let Sakura and Chichiri see him while he ate, which highly amused said two.

Not too long after they finished dinner, they all drifted off to sleep.

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IP - Can you say 'more Sakura-Chichiri WAFF'? (grin) I just _love_ doing WAFF for those two! Or at least _attempting_ it anyway. (sweatdrop) Anyone wonder when Tenkou's coming back into the picture? Well…sore wa himitsu desu! (n.n) ((That means 'that is a secret', for any of you non-Slayers fans or non-Japanese-understanding people out there (n.n"))) Anyway, please R&R! (n.n)

((IP - (sigh) 2 more chapters to go…))


	18. Chapter 14 part 4

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Yay! Next part up! (n.n) Don't worry folks, only one or two more to go! (XD)

Chichiri - _One or two,_ no da?!

Sakura - Why do I get the feeling that you're not going to keep to that?

Tasuki - (nonchalant tone) Th' readers're probably gettin' bored of us bein' small by now, so why don't'cha put us back t' normal?

IP - Tasuki, you're an open book, you know that? (n.n")

Tasuki - (starts jumping up and down as if throwing a tantrum) DAMMIT AT LEAST PUT _ME_ BACK T' MY NORMAL SIZE!!

Chichiri - _Hey!!_

IP - Oh come on, you two can last two more chapters, right? (n.n)

Chichiri and Tasuki - (flat tone) No. (-.-)

IP - Oh, you two are no fun. Everyone _else_ doesn't mind these chapters!

Chichiri and Tasuki - BECAUSE THEY AREN'T THE ONES WHO ARE THREE INCHES TALL (NO DA)!!

Kouji - Oh, stop whinin' Gen-chan.

Tasuki - URUSAI YOU! YER NOT EVEN _IN_ THIS STORY!!

Kouji - Yes I am. I w's in chapter 3! (n.n)

Everyone - (facevault)

Hishigatsu - IP doesn't own anything made by Yuu Watase. Now, enjoy the chapter, 'cuz I know _I_ will! (;D)

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

_**speech**_ speech inside the character's head that's not their own (NOT TELEPATHY)

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 14 - Honey, He Shrunk The Seishi! **Part 4**

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(_The Next Day_)

Pretty much everything went the same as the previous day. The girls woke up and packed everything up, the boys woke up, Tasuki gave Sakura and Hishigatsu a problem with getting in the jar, said girls got angry and dropped him head-first into said jar (actually, the last part was only Hishigatsu, but you get the point (sweatdrop)), Chichiri sweatdropped while watching all of this, they all left, Tasuki regained consciousness and started yelling and complaining, Sakura got pissed off (again) and left Tasuki with Hishigatsu, and that's where we are right now. (n.n)

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"How did you ever manage to put up with him? How does _anyone_ manage to put up with him?!" Sakura ranted. "He's the only person who's ever managed to throw me over the edge since--well, never mind."

Chichiri looked up at Sakura and debated on whether he should ask her why she cut herself off again or not. _I'm sure she'll bring it up sometime or another, no da._

"Sakura-chan, do you know where the next town is, or are we just walking around blindly, no da?"

"I had Hi-chan fly above the forest yesterday to see where the nearest town or village was, and she told me which direction we should go in. Every morning she does the same thing to make sure we're going in the right direction." Sakura said, and Chichiri nodded.

"Good idea, no da. How much farther do you think we need to go?"

"We should get there by tomorrow night at the latest." Sakura said. "Hopefully we'll have figured out a way to get you two back to normal by then!"

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(_Meanwhile; In the Palace of the Heavens_)

Tenkou finally decided to flip back to watching the group, and stood straight up in anger when he saw the girls continuing on their journey. He looked closely and saw a tiny Chichiri in a jar around Sakura's neck, and a tiny Tasuki struggling to get Hishigatsu to let go of him. "HARUKO!!"

A puff of black smoke appeared behind him, and the smoke quickly cleared to reveal Haruko, bowing to Tenkou on one knee. "You bellowed, my lord?"

"YES I BELLOWED!! I THOUGHT YOU SAID THAT YOU DESTROYED THOSE BAKA SEISHI!!" Tenkou exclaimed. He picked Haruko up and thrust him in front of the mirror. "YOU DIDN'T KILL THEM, YOU _SHRUNK_ THEM YOU BAKAYAROU!!"

Haruko looked carefully at the screen, and when he finally caught sight of the two seishi, he sweatdropped. "Whoops. My bad."

" 'My bad'? 'MY BAD'?! I'LL SHOW YOU 'MY BAD'!!" Tenkou exclaimed. A few seconds later, Haruko was magically binded to a chair that was placed right in front of the magic mirror, and on his eyes were a spell that forced them to stay open against his will.

"Now, as punishment, you must watch the whole 'My Little Pony' series--though I don't see how that could _possibly_ be a punishment--, _and_ all 5000 Barney tapes!!"

A distant cry could be heard around the world.

"**NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!**"

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(_Back with the group_)

Sakura and Chichiri both looked up simultaneously. "Did you hear something?" Chichiri asked. Sakura shrugged her shoulders.

"Must've been Tasuki-kun or something." Sakura said.

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(_Back in the torture chamber _(_a.k.a. the Palace of the Heavens_))

While Haruko was being forced to watch true evil in the forms of pink ponies and purple dinosaurs, Tenkou went into a separate room, which looked exactly the same as the room he was in before except…well…actually, there was really no difference between the two rooms. (sweatdrop)

"Maboroshi! Kagami!" Tenkou called out. Two puffs of gray smoke appeared in front of Tenkou. The smoke quickly cleared to reveal a set of twins, one boy and one girl. They were dressed in identical outfits--similar to the outfit Suboshi wore, only in black. The girl had her long, deep-brown hair pulled back into a ponytail, while the boy's deep-brown hair was cut short. Both of their eyes had a reddish tinge to them. They both bowed to Tenkou.

"You called, my lord?" they both said simultaneously.

"Hai. I want you to finish what that baka Haruko couldn't. You two are the ultimate pair, I have the utmost faith in you."

"Your faith is not misplaced, Tenkou-sama." they both said.

Tenkou nodded. "Good. Apparently Haruko shrank the seishi, so you two should have no trouble taking them out, along with the two onna."

The twins both nodded and disappeared in two puffs of gray smoke.

"This time, Suzaku seishi…this time you're dead! Muahahahahahahahaha!"

Meanwhile, the girl who was _still_ hiding in the shadows, to retain a mysterious air, sweatdropped. "This guy is a nutcase…" she muttered, rolling her eyes and walking away.

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(_Back With The Group; A Few Hours Later_)

The group once again stopped for the night, and it was basically the same as the other nights, so I really don't have to explain things again, right? (n.n") After they had dinner, Sakura and Hishigatsu helped Chichiri and Tasuki into their "beds", and then fell asleep themselves. Problem is, apparently Hishigatsu didn't put up a strong enough barrier…

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(_A Few Hours Later_)

Chichiri awoke to the feeling of being moved around. He poked is head out of the top of the pocket and was relieved to see Sakura, but was confused as well.

"Sakura-chan, where are we going, no da?"

Sakura looked back at him. "Oh, Chichiri-san, you're awake. I sensed youkai heading in our direction, so I figured we should move."

Chichiri nodded, not catching on to a certain little detail at first.

"Where's Hi-chan and Tasuki-kun?" he asked.

"They're not too far ahead." Sakura said, looking forward again.

Chichiri nodded and rolled his eyes when he heard Tasuki yelling. _They're at it again, no da._

But Chichiri paled when they were close enough to hear what he was saying.

"Dammit! Lemme go! LEMME GO YA IMPOSTER!!"

_Im…poster?_ Chichiri thought worriedly, looking up at Sakura.

Tasuki looked at Chichiri. "Dammit! They got you too?! Chiri, they ain't th' real thing!!"

_Not the real thing…wait a minute…_ Chichiri glared up at the imposter. "Sakura-chan doesn't call me 'Chichiri-san'."

The imposter grinned. "Whoops, my bad. Would you prefer '-kun'?"

"Dammit Chiri, RUN!"

But there was no where that Chichiri could run.

"Game over, Suzaku no shichiseishi Chichiri."

Chichiri could only push himself into the pocket out of instinct as the imposter went to grab him.

Chichiri, for the first time in a _long_ time, felt true fear.#

#((IP - (insert big, dramatic DUN DUN DUN here) (XD)))

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Sakura and Hishigatsu both cursed as they sped through the forest.

_Dammit…I can't believe I fell for that! Chichiri…please be alright…I won't be able to live with myself if something happens to you…_ Sakura thought.

Hishigatsu, meanwhile, was just thinking one thing. _If anyone even __**TOUCHES**__ Tasuki, they are __**DEAD!!**_

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(_Meanwhile_)

The imposter Sakura grabbed Chichiri, an evil grin on her face.

"Can we kill them _now_?" the imposter Hishigatsu asked.

"Sure…let's just make sure not to kill them _too_ fast. There's no fun in that, now is there?" the imposter Sakura said, grinning evilly. She began to squeeze Chichiri's body, and he knew that if she squeezed him hard enough, she could easily crush his body. Just when he felt like all of the bones in his body were going to break, he heard the fake Sakura give a cry of pain and she dropped him. Another hand quickly but gently caught him, and he automatically realized who it was.

He looked up and saw Sakura. The _real_ Sakura.

"Don't you EVER even TOUCH him again!!" she exclaimed, using her free hand to give the imposter another solid punch to the face. "And that was for impersonating me!" As the imposter was laying on the ground, trying to recover from the two surprise hits, Sakura looked down at Chichiri. "Daijoubu ka?"

Chichiri nodded, but then winced. "Okay, so maybe I'm not _fully_ alright. I'm a bit sore, nothing feels broken though…"

Sakura made sure to keep the hand holding Chichiri loose as she tightly clenched her other fist in anger. She walked a few yards away and put Chichiri down, immediately setting a barrier around him. "Stay here." she said, and he nodded, carefully sitting down to avoid straining his body any more than it had been already.

Sakura walked towards the imposter Sakura, who was slowly getting up and cradling her nose in her hands. "You broke my nose, you bitch!!" she exclaimed.

"That's what you get for hurting Chichiri-kun." Sakura said coldly, glaring. "And you'll get much more than that for trying to kill him."

The imposter Sakura let out a small, evil chuckle, bordering on a cackle. "Tenkou-sama had ordered us to kill you two as well, lucky for you. You get to be together in heaven…or rather, hell!"

She charged forward, but Sakura sidestepped her. _Damn, I don't have anything to fight with, I'm no good at hand-to-hand combat, and Chichiri didn't train me in offensive spells! What should I do?!_

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(_Meanwhile_)

Tasuki attempted to struggle out of the imposter Hishigatsu's hand, but to no avail. "Dammit, hanase!!"

The imposter Hishigatsu started squeezing Tasuki's body, but her hand loosened in surprise upon hearing something.

"Get…away…from…my…BOYFRIEND!!"

Hishigatsu--the real one--in her ghost form, came charging at the imposter Hishigatsu. She snatched Tasuki and punched the imposter Hishigatsu at pretty much the same time, sending the imposter flying backward.

"Ugh!" the imposter Hishigatsu hit the ground hard, knocking the breath out of her momentarily.

"Tasuki, daijoubu ka?" Hishigatsu asked, looking down at him with more concern on her face than he'd ever seen before.

"Y-Yea', 'm fine. I w's scared shitless, m' body's aching, but otherwise 'm 'lright." Tasuki said, giving her a weak fanged grin.

"Gomen nasai…" Hishigatsu said, her eyes downcast. "I got tricked, and you got hurt because of it."

Tasuki raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Hi-chan, y' take a blow t' th' head're somethin'? Yer _never_ this nice!"

"Yeah, but you've never almost _died_ because of me!" she shot back.

Tasuki was about to say something, when he saw something out of the corner of his eye. "HI-CHAN! DUCK!" he exclaimed, and reflexively she did what she was told. She felt something whiz right over her head, and glanced up to see a thorned vine, like the ones that Tomo used on Tamahome, Miaka, and Amiboshi. The imposter Hishigatsu cursed under her breath, pulling the vine back to her side.

Hishigatsu looked to the side and saw Sakura punch her look-alike in the face. _Ooh, __**that's**__ gonna leave a mark! _(XD)_ But in all seriousness, Sakura-chan won't last long in hand-to-hand…_ she glanced down and saw the sheath hanging from her waist, sword inside, that she'd managed to grab and tie on sometime before this whole ordeal. Without a second thought, she quickly--well, as fast as she could with only one free hand--untied it and threw it to Sakura. "Sakura-chan! Catch!"

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"Sakura-chan! Catch!"

"Huh?" Sakura looked up and reflexively caught the item thrown to her. She grinned when she saw what it was. "Arigatou gozaimasu Hi-chan!"

She quickly tied the sheath around her waist and unsheathed the sword. "Now you're in for it, you no-good imitation!" She charged and swung, and the imposter Sakura just barely was able to dodge the attack, the sword cutting her cheek. The minute the sword cut her cheek, the imposter's image began to change.

"What the--?" Sakura muttered, confused.

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"Well, guess our secret's out now, not that it was much of a secret in the first place." the imposter Hishigatsu said, though her voice now sounded more male than female. She, too, began to change her appearance, and once the transformation finished, Hishigatsu gawked, her eyes wide.

"Dude…you're a _dude!_" she exclaimed, and both Tasuki and the man sweatdropped.

The man quickly regained his posture. "Hai, I am a…dude." he sweatdropped once more. "Ore wa Maboroshi!" with that said, he shot out another few vines at Hishigatsu and Tasuki both. Hishigatsu went intangible, and the vines went right through both Tasuki and herself.

"Hm. So I see you have some tricks of your own." Maboroshi said, smirking. "This should be interesting."

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(_Meanwhile_)

The imposter Sakura introduced herself at the same time her twin brother did. "Atashi wa Kagami!" she shot out a dark blue ki blast, which Sakura parried by quickly transferring some of her ki into Hishigatsu's sword and cutting through the blast. Sakura charged once more, striking faster and harder than before. This time, her attack hit dead-on, and Chichiri saw Sakura's stance falter at the sight of the blood gushing out of the gash on Kagami's side, but she quickly re-gathered herself in time to block a hit from a ki-sword via Kagami. The two of them dueled it out, jumping around, slashing, dodging, hitting, getting hit. Chichiri winced every time Sakura was hit, and was frustrated that he couldn't help in the least bit, and that he rather had to sit down being protected by a barrier.

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Tasuki, meanwhile, was wishing he could be in the same position as Chichiri.

Hishigatsu never had the chance to put him down, because every time she tried, Maboroshi would attack him, and she'd have to keep picking him up so he wouldn't get hit. So she was forced to fight with only one hand, the other busy holding onto Tasuki and making sure that he didn't get hurt.

Maboroshi's attacks were getting stronger and faster, and so far Hishigatsu had been able to keep up with them. But when he upped the speed a bit more…

"Hi-chan!!" Tasuki exclaimed, looking down at Hishigatsu's stomach, where one of the vines had pierced. She hadn't been able to go intangible in time, and the vine had went straight through her stomach. For some unknown reason, the vine hadn't killed her on impact.

"Ugh…" she muttered, clenching her teeth tightly and her eyes tearing up in pain, especially when the vine retracted from her body, leaving a hole in her stomach, blood gushing out of it. _Something's not right…about his powers…they seem familiar too…maboroshi…where have I heard that word before?_

"Ne, Tasuki, what does 'maboroshi' mean?" Hishigatsu asked through gritted teeth, concentrating on keeping upright.

Tasuki blinked in confusion, wondering why Hishigatsu would want a vocabulary lesson now of all times. " 'm pretty sure it means 'illusion', why?"

Hishigatsu slapped her forehead--which she quickly regretted, seeing as she was starting to feel lightheaded from all the blood-loss as well as from the pain--and said, "Well, that explains why his powers are so familiar! They're all illusions! Which means…" remembering how Amiboshi broke free of Tomo's illusions, Hishigatsu decided to try a different approach. "Tasuki, I need you to bite me, as hard as you can! Right now!"

"What th' hell're ya sayin'?! Why th' hell would I do somethin' stupid like that?!"

"Because, if I concentrate on it hard enough, the pain should hopefully be enough to break all of the illusions, including my wounds!" Hishigatsu explained. She looked up in time to see another vine headed straight for her head, and she ducked just in time. "Don't ask questions, just do it!"

"Alright…'ere goes!" Tasuki exclaimed.

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"Ugh!!"

Sakura knocked Kagami down for what seemed like the hundredth time, panting and gasping for air. _This is getting repetitive…we knock each other to the ground, and then we get back up and continue fighting…but one of us has to give in sooner or later_--_and hopefully that someone won't be me._

But Kagami recovered faster than Sakura expected and charged forward, catching Sakura by surprise and sending her flying backwards with one smooth hit. She cried out in surprise and pain as her body hit a nearby tree--hard.

"Sakura-chan!" Chichiri exclaimed, and without a second thought, he ran out of the barrier and towards her--

--but instantly regretted it as Kagami quickly blocked his path. "Where do you think you're going, _little_ houshi?"

Chichiri gulped, realizing the position he'd just put himself in.

"I could just take the same approach as I did before, but I'm feeling nice." her voice changed, and now it sounded like Sakura's. "This time I'll make it quick and painful!" an evil grin began to work it's way onto her face. "But to make sure you don't get away…osuwari."

Chichiri gulped as he felt the beads pull him down to the ground painfully and pin him there.

"Shi ne, Suzaku no shichiseishi Chichiri." she said darkly, a full evil grin on her face as she raised her foot over Chichiri's body. Chichiri squeezed his eyes shut. _Dear Suzaku, is it really going to end like this?_#

#((IP - (insert another big, dramatic DUN DUN DUN here) (XD)))

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"Alright…'ere goes!" Tasuki exclaimed. He bit down on Hishigatsu's hand as hard as he could.

Hishigatsu winced when she felt his fangs break skin, but she focused as much as she could on the pain in her hand that was quickly shooting up her whole arm. Just as she'd thought, the illusions started to fade away--along with the wounds on her body caused by said illusions, like the wound through her stomach and the vine that caused it--leaving a defenseless Maboroshi.

Hishigatsu smirked, feeling her energy rush back to her. "Game over, illusion-boy."

She flew forward, and using her free (and uninjured) hand, she formed a ball of ectoplasmic energy. Then she quickly absorbed the energy into her fist, continuing to charge forward. "You're dead!!"

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Chichiri kept his eyes squeezed shut, waiting for his assumedly painful death, but was more than startled when he didn't feel anything. He threw caution to the wind and opened his eyes. He looked up (to the best of his abilities, at the moment) and saw Sakura's hand holding Kagami's foot, her hand shaking from her effort to push Kagami's foot away. "That was low…imitating my voice to use the beads…how did you even know about them?"

Kagami chuckled evilly, her voice back to normal, and continued to attempt to push her foot down. "Tenkou-sama knows everything, and as his loyal warriors, so do we."

She pushed her foot down harder, and Sakura struggled to keep it away from Chichiri long enough for the beads' spell to wear off. But Sakura's strength was really more in her lower body than her upper body, so Kagami quickly began to overwhelm her, and Kaida's foot began to push her hand down. The minute that Sakura's hand touched Chichiri's body, though, something in her snapped. Suddenly, with an almost new-found strength, she pushed Kagami's foot up, grabbed her ankle with both hands, and swung her around, letting go and sending her flying behind her all in one smooth movement. Kagami hit her head on a tree and slid down the tree, unconscious and a bit of blood trickling down from the injured area.

Sakura breathed heavily, the sudden rush of energy gone as fast as it came. She picked up her sword from where she'd dropped it, then sheathed it and turned back around, kneeling down by Chichiri. "Daijoubu ka?"

"H-Hai…" he responded, the spell almost completely worn off by now. She helped fully break the spell using her telekinesis. "Arigatou."

Her expression changed from worry over him and relief that he was alright to outright anger. "What were you _thinking?!_ You could've gotten killed! You almost _did_ get killed! What would've happened if I didn't get there in time, huh?" she yelled.

"Gomen nasai." Chichiri said, taking off his mask and looking down at the ground. "You're right, I was reckless and almost died because of it. Demo, I was…I just…I saw you get hit and I…I got worried…and I know that's no excuse, but I guess I just didn't think. Gomen."

Sakura sighed. "You don't have to apologize, I shouldn't have yelled. You just gave me a bit of a scare, that's all." _He'd never normally do something so reckless…not even when it seemed like Miaka was about to be killed…and this is the second time he's reacted this way for me…odd._

Chichiri nodded and looked up--and his eye widened in surprise. "Sakura-chan! Abunai!!"

Sakura, out of reflex, took out her sword as she turned around--

--and wound up using Kagami's heart as a sheath, as her sword had gotten in the path of Kagami's body, which was in mid-air.

Kagami's eyes widened, and blood poured out of her chest and her mouth. She fell to the ground. "Mabo…roshi……nii…san…" Her eyes closed as her body went limp.

Sakura let go of the hilt of her sword in shock, her eyes opened wide and her breath coming in short gasps, close to sobs.

Chichiri closed his eye and looked away sadly. "At least it's over now." he looked at Sakura, and his brows scrunched together in confusion and worry. "Sakura-chan, what's wrong? Daijoubu ka?"

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(_Meanwhile_)

"You're dead!"

Hishigatsu flew forward, fist outstretched and glowing with energy. Maboroshi could only watch in shock as she punched him straight through the chest, quickly pulling her fist out once the damage was done. He looked down at the hole in his chest, still in shock, as the blood gushed out. He fell to the ground. "Kaga…mi……imou…to…" He closed his eyes and his body went limp. Hishigatsu turned away and shuddered a bit. _Too much blood for my taste, but what's done is done._ She turned to Sakura and saw her turn around and accidentally stab Kagami. _Tamahome-shish-kabob book 5 déjà vu! Heh heh. _She mentally sweatdropped before looking down at Tasuki. "Daijoubu ka?"

Tasuki nodded, then looked at the part of her hand that he bit with a frown. "Y' should at least wrap that up. It's still bleedin'."

Hishigatsu lifted her hand so it was eye-level with her, and she was able to make out a wet spot on her dark red glove. "No wonder I didn't notice, the blood blends in with the glove."

She carefully switched Tasuki to her other hand. "Hope the blood doesn't stain, 'cuz I have no clue how to even get this outfit off!" she joked.

But Tasuki wasn't focused on Hishigatsu. She followed his line of sight to Sakura, who was staring at Kagami's body in shock. Without a second thought, she rushed over to Sakura's side, putting Tasuki down next to Chichiri on the way. "Sakura-chan, daijoubu ka?!" she asked urgently, putting her uninjured hand on Sakura's shoulder. Sakura flinched away.

"Again…not again…" she breathed out, tears gathering in her eyes. Chichiri, Tasuki, and Hishigatsu were all worried now.

"Sakura-chan, what's the matter?" Chichiri asked, his now-maskless face openly showing his concern. He and Tasuki walked up to her.

"If it's 'bout that girl y' killed, then don' worry 'bout it, she dese--"

(thwack)

"Itai!" Tasuki rubbed the spot where Chichiri whacked him.

"Osuwari!"

(thud)

"Itai!! What was that for?!" Tasuki exclaimed.

Hishigatsu and Chichiri ignored him. "Sakura-chan, are you going to be alright, no da?"

Sakura stood up so fast that she knocked Chichiri over. "I need to be alone. Don't follow me."

"D-Demo--" Chichiri started.

"JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!!" she yelled. Then with a small gasp, she shook her head. "Just…I just want to be alone. Please."

And then she ran off, Hishigatsu, Chichiri, and Tasuki (who managed to get up, because the command wasn't meant to be strong) all watching her silently.

A minute or two after she'd gone, Hishigatsu and Tasuki looked at Chichiri, who was now idly toying with his mask, carefully ignoring their stares.

"Chichiri-kun." Hishigatsu said, sitting down next to him.

"I'm not going after her. She said that she didn't want us to follow her." Chichiri stated, a bit of hurt laced in his voice.

Hishigatsu was about to say something, but Tasuki beat her to the punch. "Ch'chiri, if there's one thing I've learned 'bout most wimmen, it's that when they tell ya t' do somethin', they usually want ya t' do th' opposite. So when Sakura-chan says that she don't want'cha followin' 'er, it means that she _does_ want'cha t' follow 'er!"

Chichiri finally looked up at Tasuki, a small smile playing on his face. "That makes no sense whatsoever, you know that, no da?"

"Actually, it does, in a way, now that I think about it." Hishigatsu said, laughing lightly and shrugging. "Even if we don't mean it, girls will sometimes say something, but then hope that the opposite is done…I guess you could say it's a sort of reverse psychology, but that's not the point. The point is that Sakura-chan told us not to go…but she _does_ want at least _you_ to go, I'm sure of that." Hishigatsu looked to the side sadly. "Sakura-chan seems to trust you a lot…maybe even more than me. But I guess that's to be expected, ne?" she continued before he could ask what she meant by that. "She's hiding something, I know she is, but she doesn't want to tell me and I'm fine with that. Not everyone likes to talk about their past, but I suppose you know about that already."

Chichiri looked away and nodded.

"Look, all I'm trying to say is that you should at least try and warm up to her, at least let her tell _you_ what's bothering her…there's only so much that best friends can share, y'know?"

Chichiri nodded. "So you're saying that I should start by going now?"

Hishigatsu nodded, then smiled. "Yeah. I'll take you, since we don't have any specific idea of where she is. And…arigatou. I wish I could be there for Sakura-chan all the time…but as long as Sakura-chan's happy, then I'm happy."

Chichiri smiled, looking up at Hishigatsu. "You're a good person."

Hishigatsu grinned. "You suspected otherwise?"

Both Tasuki and Chichiri rolled their eyes.

"Daa, so how are you gonna figure out where Sakura-chan is, no da?" Chichiri asked. Then he paled and his eye widened. "Don't tell me you're going to--"

"Ikuzo!" Hishigatsu exclaimed, grinning. She picked Chichiri up and flew off, yelling a quick "Be right back!" over her shoulder.

Chichiri's face was extremely pale and the only reason he didn't even let out a startled scream was because he had to focus on remembering how to breath.

Hishigatsu laughed. "Jeez Chichiri-kun, relax! I think I see Sakura-chan already!"

Chichiri breathed out a sigh in relief.

Sure enough, after a few more seconds Sakura came into Chichiri's line of vision. She was sitting down, right in front of a large tree. She was leaning forward, hugging her knees to her chest, and her head was resting on her knees.

_Sakura-chan…_ Hishigatsu thought sadly. She looked down at Chichiri, who was watching Sakura with mixed emotions on his maskless face. _I hope that Chichiri can make you happy in the ways that I, your best friend, can't. And…I hope you do the same for him._

"I don't wanna bother Sakura-chan right now, so…" Hishigatsu said, grinning evilly. "Jaa!"

Before Chichiri could ask what she meant, she dropped him a few feet from where Sakura was sitting (but at least 80-or-so feet up in the air) and flew off, a quick "Gambatte!" thrown over her shoulder.

It took a few seconds for the shock to wear off, but once it did, he had to focus to make sure that he didn't faint. He did the only thing he could think of. "SAKURA-CHAAAAAAANNNNN!!"

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(_Meanwhile _Right after Sakura ran off)

Sakura ran off into the forest, tears streaming down her face. _I can't believe I did that…I can't believe that I yelled at Chichiri-kun when he was just worried about me…but I don't want to tell him…not yet……I can't believe that I did it again…I…I killed someone…again…I promised them that I wouldn't kill again…but I broke my promise. Okaa-san…Otou-san…Sora-kun…and even Yukito-kun…gods, was so long ago, yet it feels like just yesterday!_ she stopped running, out of breath even though she hadn't run all that far, and continued walking instead, absentmindedly running her hand across the scar on her stomach as she thought of the four deceased people that she loved and had held above all. Tears began to stream down her face faster with each passing thought of her deceased loved ones. She suddenly found herself in a deep part of the forest, with no trees blocking her view of the sky. But Sakura wasn't interested in looking at the sky right now. Instead, she sat by a large tree, and leaned forward, hugging her knees to her chest. She buried her face in her knees and wept for a few minutes. "…ra…an…"

Sakura stopped crying and dried her eyes and cheeks off with her sleeve. _That's weird. I thought I heard something._

"Sa…ra...an…"

Sakura lifted her head.

"Sakura-chan!"

"Chichiri-kun?" Sakura looked around, sure that she heard him somewhere.

"SAKURA-CHAN, TASUKETE, NO DAAAA!!"

Sakura's head shot up, and she saw Chichiri falling, now at least 20 feet from the ground.

Without a second thought, she bolted over to where Chichiri was falling and slowed his fall using her telekinesis. She carefully lowered him onto her outstretched hand.

"Ari…gatou…no da…" he said, and then he fainted.

Sakura sweatdropped.

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(_A Few Minutes Later_)

Chichiri opened his eye and moaned. "I am going to kill that Hishigatsu if it's the last thing I do." he mumbled, slowly sitting up.

"You mean if there's anything left of her once _I'm_ through with her."

Chichiri looked to the side and saw Sakura sitting not too far away from him, her back leaned against the trunk of the same tree she sat in front of before. Her arms were crossed across her chest and she looked at him, her face devoid of any sort of emotion, a fact that made Chichiri gulp nervously.

Even though he was nervous, he still stood up and looked her in the eye. "Sakura-chan, I know you told me not to come. And you have every right to be mad--especially because of what just happened, though it wasn't my fault. Demo, I'm worried about you, and I just want to help…Hi-chan told me that I should come and talk to you…and I've told you already that whenever you need to talk, I'll be willing to listen…so will you tell me what's the matter?" Chichiri asked. "I have a feeling that it goes beyond what happened with Kagami. You said "again"…what did you mean by that?"

Sakura looked away. "Nan demo nai."

"If you don't want to tell me, I understand…" Chichiri said, though it pained him to know that Sakura didn't trust him, after all this time.

Sakura paused, then sighed. "Iie…I won't tell you." Sakura said, looking at Chichiri. But when Chichiri started to look down, hurt, she shook her head and gave him a small smile. "I won't tell you…not yet anyway."

Chichiri looked up at her.

"I'm almost ready, demo…I still need time. You understand, ne?" Sakura said, and Chichiri nodded. "When I'm finally ready to talk to someone…I…I'd appreciate it if you'd be the one to listen."

Chichiri smiled. "Whenever you're ready, Sakura-chan."

"Demo…" she started, looking away a bit. "I won't ask this of you as a demand, but rather a request…onegai…whatever I tell you…just…don't hate me because of it…I wouldn't be able to stand it if you hated me…" she blushed as fresh tears began to roll down her face.

Chichiri blushed as well, but smiled. _Tasuki-kun was right…some girls __**do**__ manage to look cute when they cry…or even beautiful…_ and he didn't push the thought away, a fact that his 'inner self' was ecstatic about, though he didn't 'say' anything, so as not to ruin the moment.

Chichiri walked over to Sakura's side. "So…you're not mad at me for coming, are you, no da?" he checked, smiling.

She dried her eyes and shook her head, smiling. "You're the one person I can never truly manage to get mad at."

Chichiri sat down. "Are you ready to go back, no da?"

"Iie, not yet." Sakura said. "It's nice and quiet around here--something we don't really get around Hi-chan and Tasuki-kun. I wanna enjoy it while it lasts."

Chichiri chuckled. "I see your point, no da. Demo, it's late as it is, no da. We should go back before the animals star--daa!"

Chichiri jumped as an owl hooted suddenly, and Sakura laughed.

"Relax, it's just an owl." Sakura said.

"Easy for you to say, no da. You're not the one that the owl could mistake for dinner, no da."

Sakura laughed. "Okay then, I'll 'protect' you from the owl."

Chichiri blushed but stuck out his tongue at her. "You're so mean, no da!" he pouted.

Sakura laughed. "If _I'm_ mean, then what would you call _Hi-chan?_"

"I suppose that's tr--daa!!"

Once again, Chichiri jumped 10 feet when the owl hooted. Sakura was all but rolling with laughter.

"Daa…can we _please_ just go back now, no da?" Chichiri asked, his face bright red from embarrassment. And the worst part (for him at least) was that he didn't have his mask on, making it that much easier to see his embarrassment.

"Hai, hai, let's go." Sakura said, forcing her laughter to die down. She reached down to pick up Chichiri, but stopped when she saw him unconsciously shrink back. _What happened before…I guess it effected him more than I thought…I should've realized… I'm such an idiot! Here I am, moping about killing the __**bad guy,**__ while Chichiri… Chichiri-kun almost lost his __**life!**_

Chichiri blushed from embarrassment again. "G-Gomen…no da."

"It's alright, don't worry about it." Sakura said, smiling. She lifted him onto her hand using her telekinesis and slowly stood up. "Better?"

Chichiri nodded. "Gomen about this, no da. I just…"

"Don't worry about it. I understand." Sakura said, looking around. "I think I came from this direction…" she muttered. "Yeah, I sense Hi-chan in that direction."

She began to walk in said direction slowly and silently, her eyes glazed over in thought.

Chichiri fidgeted in his spot a little, finding the silence particularly unnerving for some reason. Finally, after Sakura had been walking for some time without saying anything, he asked, "Daijoubu ka?"

Sakura jumped a little, startled. "Ah, gomen Chichiri-kun, I was just thinking is all." she said, not looking at Chichiri at all.

Chichiri looked up at Sakura, an unreadable expression on his maskless face. "That doesn't answer my question."

Sakura glanced down at Chichiri and gave him a reassuring smile. "Daijoubu, daijoubu. You know what a wise man once said to me? 'You're such a mother hen, no da!' " she laughed lightly.

Chichiri smiled. _At least she's well enough to joke around, no da._

"Anou, Chichiri-kun?" Sakura said, her laughter gone.

"Hai?"

"I…I just wanted to apologize…for before…when I yelled. I didn't…I mean…I hope you're not angry with me." she said quietly, turning her head as she started to blush out of embarrassment.

"Why would I be angry with you, no da? It wasn't your fault." Chichiri said. "You were upset, it's understandable."

Sakura nodded and smiled a little. "Arigatou Chichiri-kun. You're too nice to me."

"It's not like it doesn't go both ways, no da. I'm glad that Hi-chan stuck with Tasuki-kun, more so now than before!" Chichiri said.

"That reminds me, I'm going to have nice long 'chat' with Hi-chan about what she did." Sakura said, grinning evilly. "Hm, what form of punishment--I mean _conversation_, should I use?"

Chichiri was about to respond, but was cut off by a loud (but cute) yawn coming out of his mouth instead. He blushed. "Ah, s-sumimasen Sakura-chan."

Sakura could barely keep her smile from escalating into a fangirlish grin. "Don't worry about it. I'll pick up the pace a bit." Sakura said. "I'm tired too, and it _is_ late. Wouldn't be surprised if we all wound up sleeping in tomorrow morning."

Chichiri nodded, stifling another yawn.

"You know, I don't mind if you fall asleep now." Sakura said, grinning teasingly. "Not like you haven't done it before. I always knew I was a boring person, but I didn't think I was _that_ bad!"

Sakura laughed as Chichiri tiredly protested against that, and he seemed determined to stay awake until they reached the campsite.

"I was only joking around, you know." Sakura said, rolling her eyes. "And I really don't mind if you fall asleep now, you're tired. We still have a few more minutes until we get to the campsite."

Chichiri shook his head, but it seemed to be more to keep himself awake than out of disagreement. "I can stay awake for a few more minutes, no da. Demo, I just can't understand why I'm so tired all the time, na no da…"

"I have a feeling that your body is trying to grow back to its normal size on its own, thus making it function more like a…child's body, which is why you're always so tired." Sakura said, hesitating to say anything worse than 'child', for fear of damaging his already pretty-much-completely-destroyed dignity by comparing his body to a baby's or a toddler's.

Chichiri blushed out of embarrassment, which further increased when another small yawn escaped before he could stifle it.

But he didn't feel as bad when shortly afterwards, a small yawn escaped Sakura's mouth. To say that she turned scarlet would be an understatement. "I guess yawns really _are_ contagious." she muttered, and quickened her pace even more. By the time they got back to the campsite, Hishigatsu and Tasuki were both already asleep. Sakura placed Chichiri in the pocket of her bag, and no less than a millisecond later she heard his quiet snoring. She stifled a fangirlish giggle. _Oh for Suzaku's sake, I'm __**19 years old!!**__ I'm not a little teenager with a crush, I'm gonna be 20!! I've gotta cut that fangirlish stuff out!_

She laid down right next to the bag where Chichiri and Tasuki slept, and instantly fell asleep herself.

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IP - (O.O) Jeez, that was a looooong chappie! (sweatdrop) Hope I didn't bore all of you out there to death, especially with my cheesy attempt at Sakura-Chichiri WAFF (once again (n.n")) And gomen about the 'DUN DUN DUN' things stuck in during those "tense" scenes…the point of them was to remind you to think about the situation, and realize that the guy's 3-inches-tall, and about to be _squashed_ to death. (XD) C'mon, that's not how I'd kill off a character! I'd make it a lot more dramatic than that! (XD) (Not to mention the fact that I wouldn't put it smack in the middle of a series of humor chappies (XP)) Well, the next part _should_ be the last one of my 'mini-series' (pun fully intended (;D)), but that's providing I can stuff everything that I want to stuff into this 'mini-series' (that I didn't already) in that one part, but I shall try! (n.n) After this 'mini-series' is over, things will get a little more serious (though how serious it could get with _me_ as the authoress should be obvious by now (sweatdrop)), and don't worry, you _will_ hear from Yui, Tetsuya, and Suboshi again! (If you even remembered that they were part of this story (n.n")) You'll see a bunch of familiar faces, new twists, and hopefully just have an overall good read. (n.n) Anyway, that's enough of my rambling, so R&R folks! (n.n)

((IP - (sigh) Just one more...))


	19. Chapter 14 part 5

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Alright, alright, this is the last part.

Chichiri and Tasuki - Yatta (no da)!!

IP - (-.-) You don't need to be so happy, you know.

Hishigatsu - Yeah, I _liked_ these chappies!

Tasuki - Can't imagine why _you_ liked 'em. (-.-)

Sakura - Y'know, I hate to say it, but I sorta enjoyed these chapters too…

Chichiri - (whines) _Sakura-chan_!!

Sakura - Well it's true!

IP - Heh, see? Everyone but you two enjoyed these chappies. (leans over and whispers in Chichiri's ear) I would've thought that you'd've liked these chappies, considering how much time you got to spend with Sakura…(smirk)

Chichiri - (blush)

IP - Okay, I'm sure you're all eager to see what happens in the last part of this chappie, so go on and read! But I'm warnin' ya--it's gonna be a bit of a long one! (n.n)

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 Place/Time Change (followed by information in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ Character's Thoughts

_**speech**_ Speech in a character's head that's not their own (NOT TELEPATHY)

… Telepathy

(…) Action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 14 - Honey, He Shrunk The Seishi! **Part 5**

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(_The Next Day_)

Sakura woke up when she felt something wet drop onto her head. After she allowed her brain a few seconds to turn back on, she realized that it was raining.

"Oh, you have _got_ to be kidding me!" she grumbled, frustrated.

"Sakura-chan!"

Sakura turned to Hishigatsu.

"We should find shelter before the rain gets worse." Hishigatsu said, and Sakura nodded.

She picked up her bag and slung it over her shoulder as carefully as possible. Hishigatsu took the reigns of the horse with the supplies and the two girls ran, looking for shelter.

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Chichiri woke up from the feeling of being moved around. Before he could stop himself, he panicked, but he immediately tried to calm himself down. _I-Iie…I can't jump to conclusions just yet…besides, those two imposters_--_Maboroshi and Kagami_--_were killed yesterday, so there's no way that it's them…it's only Sakura-chan…_ he tried to convince himself.

The bag moved suddenly, and Chichiri fell against the side of the pocket. He heard a muttered curse and was both happy and nervous when he recognized it as Sakura's voice. _What if it's not the real one…?_

"Dammit, I'm surprised they haven't woken up by now." he heard Sakura say. "We've gotta quicken the pace, the last thing we need is for any of us to get sick from this rain."

It was only then that Chichiri realized that he was soaked to the bone. He shivered and rubbed his arms in an attempt to dry off and warm himself up.

"Finally!" he heard Sakura exclaim. A few seconds later, he felt solid ground under him, meaning that she'd put the bag down.

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Sakura and Hishigatsu had found a large cave, with enough room to fit both the horse and themselves and still have room to spare.

They brought the horse to the back, and took two fairly-dry blankets from one of the packs. They both took off their soaked shirts, pants, socks, and shoes. They were able to change their socks, but they had to each wrap a blanket around them because all of their clothes had gotten wet.

Hishigatsu grabbed some twigs by the edge of the cave (that weren't drenched, luckily) and put them where Sakura was sitting. She then used an energy beam to set the twigs on fire, and the two girls sat by the fire and tried to dry themselves and warm themselves up.

"Damn that Tenkou no baka, he _had_ to go and make it rain, especially after what happened last night." Hishigatsu grumbled.

"Yeah, I know. One more day wasted." Sakura said, frowning. "At this rate, we'll _never_ find the seishi!"

"Oh well, I'm still pretty tired from last night anyway; a little rest won't hurt us." Hishigatsu said.

Sakura nodded, then looked over at the bag. "I'm surprised that the guys didn't wake up by now. I really think we should've woken them up before we left, especially after what happened last night…"

Chichiri smiled in relief from inside of the pocket. _It __**is**__ Sakura-chan, no da. She's the only one who would worry so much, na no da._ (n.n)

He attempted to get out of the pocket, but found that the flap was locked shut. "Anou…Sakura-chan? Hi-chan?" he said. He waited until heard the sound of the lock being opened, and saw the flap being lifted.

Sakura smiled when he popped his head out. "Ohayo Chichiri-kun."

"Ohayo Sakura-chan, Hi-chan." Chichiri said, climbing out of the pocket and walking over to them. Hishigatsu smiled and returned the greeting with a nod.

"Gomen for not waking you up before we left, kedo, we wanted to get out of the rain as fast as possible…" Sakura said.

Chichiri shook his head. "Iie, don't worry about it, no da."

"Chichiri-kun, you should really get out of those wet clothes." Hishigatsu said bluntly.

Chichiri blushed. "I-Iie, it's alright."

"Hi-chan's right, you should at least take off your shirt, before you get sick." Sakura said, and Chichiri blushed even more.

"D-Daa…daijoubu, I won't get si--" but he cut himself off as he sneezed.

"Look, we said to take off your shirt, _so take off your shirt!_" Hishigatsu said, towering over Chichiri.

"Y-Yes ma'am, no da!" Chichiri squeaked out, taking off his soaked shirt and kesa in record time. Hishigatsu was rolling with laughter.

Sakura held back her laughter as best as she could. She lightly whacked Hishigatsu in the back of the head for, once again, taking advantage of the size difference for her own amusement, before turning to Chichiri. "Gomen Chichiri-kun, kedo, the last thing we need is anyone getting sick, and having cold, wet material pressed to your chest won't do anything good for you."

"Ah, what've _you_ got to be embarrassed about?" Hishigatsu asked, once again being blunt, and rolled her eyes. "It's not like you have anything you need to cover up. Besides, you think you're the only one who had to take off their wet clothes?"

Chichiri's face turned close to scarlet, and that was with his mask on. Sakura whacked Hishigatsu, deeply blushing as well. "Baka! You really think that Chichiri-kun needed to know that?!" she turned to Chichiri. "Gomen nasai, Chichiri-kun." she used her telekinesis to take Chichiri's shirt and kesa and put them by her and Hishigatsu's clothes. "You should come stand by the fire and warm up a bit."

Chichiri nodded and walked a bit closer to the fire, sitting down next to Sakura.

The three of them stayed in a slightly awkward silence, until…

"Mmm…wha'…WHAT TH' HELL?! WHERE TH' HELL 'M I?! LEMME OUT!!"

Hishigatsu, Sakura, and Chichiri all sweatdropped.

Hishigatsu walked over to the bag and opened the flap. "You can stop screaming like a little girl any day now. (-.-)"

Tasuki popped his head out and sweatdropped. "Eheheh…gomen."

Hishigatsu sighed and helped Tasuki climb out of the pocket. "You're really something else, you know that?"

"Yeah, I know." Tasuki said, giving her his trademark fanged grin.

Hishigatsu shook her head. "Anyway, you should take off that wet shirt before you get sick."

Tasuki blushed but shrugged. "Meh, whatever." he smirked. "Not like y' haven't seen me wit'out m' shirt before."

Now it was Hishigatsu's turn to blush. "Urusai, that was your own fault! No one told you to come into my room shirtless! You could've put a shirt on _before_ you came to wake me up!"

"Naa, kedo, where's the fun in that?" Tasuki asked, grinning flirtatiously at her.

Sakura smirked, intervening in their argument. "It's good to see that you two are never bored when Chichiri-kun and I aren't around." she said slyly.

Now both of them blushed. They both started yelling at Sakura out of embarrassment, but Sakura just laughed it off.

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(_Meanwhile; In the Palace of the Heavens_)

"THOSE GOOD-FOR-NOTHING GODDAMN BAKA SERVANTS OF MINE COULDN'T EVEN KILL TWO THREE-INCH-TALL POWERLESS SEISHI AND TWO BAKA ONNA?!"

Tenkou was livid, yelling that same statement out over and over as if he'd get an answer by doing so. He was also throwing a tantrum like a two-year-old, jumping up and down angrily.

"WHY WON'T THOSE GODDAMN SEISHI JUST DIE?!"

"Ever think that the problem is that you're underestimating those two onna?"

Tenkou stopped throwing a tantrum and turned around to face a girl with light brown hair and pure blue eyes…or rather, they would have been pure blue if it wasn't for the negative energy flowing through her whole body, giving them a darker tint to those who looked into them deep enough. Though she was only dressed in a simple, common village-girl-type robe, she was still very beautiful in appearance.

Tenkou frowned. "Did I give you permission to speak?"

"Does it matter? I'm trying to help you out here." the girl said coolly.

"Well? Continue." Tenkou said, a bit peeved at the lack of respect he was receiving.

"You've been focusing all of your strength on just killing the seishi, while putting off the onna as no threat whatsoever. Demo, who were the ones who killed Maboroshi and Kagami? Who are the ones who're still searching for the seishi, despite the setback that Haruko no baka gave them? They're stronger than they seem, both physically and mentally, they can handle just as much as those two seishi, maybe even more, and are thus just as much of a threat to you. You should focus on taking them all out…and there are many ways of making one disappear and be rid of…whether it be physically, by killing…or you could do it the easy way…"

"Tenkou-sama."

Tenkou turned around to face Haruko. "Did I say that your punishment ended?"

"H-Hai, actually it did." Haruko shuddered. "All of those…tapes…finished."

Tenkou nodded. "Hopefully you've learned your lesson."

Haruko got on his knees. "Hai, I have, my lord. That is why I request a second chance, to make amends for my error."

Tenkou thought about it for a moment before nodding. "Alright…wait until nightfall, when their defenses are down. And this time, it would be in your best interest to succeed."

"Hai, my lord." Haruko said. Before disappearing in a puff of black smoke, he thought, _Good thing he forgot to restrain my powers, or I would have gone insane for sure!_

Tenkou turned back to the girl. "Prepare yourself as well. You are my key warrior, and I know that if Haruko doesn't finish the job, that you will."

"Hai…my lord." she said a bit bitterly, before leaving the room. _Soon…soon I'll see you again…and I shall make sure that nothing…or rather no __**one**__…stands in my way._

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(_Back with the seishi and the girls_)

The next few hours were completely uneventful. The fire all but burnt out, and the girls didn't have any sticks to keep it going. Luckily, it didn't seem to be getting any colder, so the girls were alright. The guys, on the other hand…

"It's fuckin' FREEZIN' in here!! Can't'cha start up th' fire again?!"

The two guys were both sitting in front of what was left of the fire. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to keep them both warm, and Tasuki was getting angry…as always. (sweatdrop)

The two girls sighed and did their best to ignore him.

"I'm bored." Hishigatsu said after a few minutes, leaning back against the wall behind her and sighing. On the opposite side of the cave, Sakura mirrored her action.

"Well, what do you want _me_ to do about it?" Sakura asked. "Why don't you just play your DS?"

"Because it's at home, charging. (-.-)"

"Oh." Sakura said, sweatdropping. "You wanna play _my_ DS?"

Hishigatsu sat up and grinned. "You need to ask?"

Sakura leaned over, reached into her bag, and pulled out a case, which she tossed to Hishigatsu. Hishigatsu caught it, opened it up, and immediately took out the DS and turned it on.

"Supersonic Warriors 2 is already in there." Sakura said.

"You are a god!!" Hishigatsu exclaimed happily, and Sakura laughed, shaking her head.

Tasuki walked over to Hishigatsu, curiosity replacing the thought of being cold. "Ne, Hi-chan, what's that?"

"Hm? Oh, this is just a game from our world. It's a fighting game; it uses a sort of…erm…_magic_ to make the pictures on the screen move how you want them to move and such. It's really fun!"

Sakura, seeing a chance to _finally_ get Tasuki to stay quiet, used her telekinesis to lift him onto Hishigatsu's shoulder. The minute that Hishigatsu started playing, both of them became video-game-zombies/junkies, whichever term you prefer. (sweatdrop)

Sakura smiled and sighed contently, leaning back against the wall. She looked at Chichiri, who was still trying to warm himself up by what remained of the fire, and frowned when she saw him shiver. "Chichiri-kun, you're not going to warm up by sitting by a pile of ashes, y'know."

She took one of the extra fairly-dry blankets from near her bag and picked Chichiri up using her telekinesis, startling him. "This blanket's a bit big, so we can share it. I don't need you to get sick."

"D-Daa, you don't need to worry about me, no da…" Chichiri said, embarrassed. But Sakura ignored him and placed him on the part of the blanket covering her legs, followed by placing the blanket she'd picked up carefully on the two of them. Chichiri was blushing furiously, and his body was stiff in embarrassment.

"Chichiri-kun, relax. Hi-chan and Tasuki-kun aren't even paying attention, and I don't mind, so you have nothing to be embarrassed about." Sakura said, reading him easily. She carefully reached over and into her bag, trying not to move too much, and took out a book. She opened up to a bit more than 3/4 into the book and began to read.

Chichiri was stiff for the first few minutes, but he reluctantly relaxed after seeing that he wasn't gonna be going anywhere anytime soon. He sighed. _Somehow, I think that ever since Tasuki-kun and I were shrunk, Sakura-chan became more forward, no da……not that that's a __**bad**__ thing, I suppose…_

After a few minutes, Sakura closed her book, put it to the side, and sighed.

Chichiri looked up at her. "Doushita no, na no da?"

"Nan demo nai. I'm just done with my book and I'm bored." Sakura said, frowning. "_And_ it's still early. What am I supposed to do all day?"

"Didn't you bring your laptop with you?" Hishigatsu asked, without looking up from the DS. Tasuki's eyes never left the DS either, and he had moved himself so that he was leaning against Hishigatsu's neck (which explained why he wasn't complaining about being cold any more).

"I left it at the palace, remember?" Sakura said.

"Oh yeah." Hishigatsu said, in an unfocused voice that told Sakura that she wasn't paying attention.

Sakura sweatdropped and shook her head.

"Da, Sakura-chan?" Chichiri said, and Sakura looked down.

"Hai?"

"What are we going to do about food, no da? We don't have any more wood for a fire, and the rain doesn't look like it'll let up for a while…"

Sakura frowned. "Didn't think of that." she shrugged. "Oh well. We'll figure it out when we get hungry."

Chichiri sweatdropped at her laid-back response.

Sakura reached over and dragged her bag to her side. She dug through the bag, looking for something to do. "Ugh, maybe I should just go to sleep, there's nothing better to do." she muttered. "My GBA's at home, my laptop and the DVD player are at the palace, I finished the only book I brought with me, Hi-chan's using my DS, my MP3's running out of batteries…okay, that's it, I give up." she sighed and leaned back against the wall. "I am officially bored."

She looked outside, for lack of anything better to do. She smiled when she saw lightning, and laughed when there was a loud crack of thunder and Chichiri jumped 10-or-so feet in the air.

"Daa…" Chichiri blushed, embarrassed.

Sakura fixed the blanket back over the two of them. She looked back outside and saw another flash of lightning. She immediately began to count quietly.

"One…two…three…four…five…six…"

(crack)

Right after she finished counting to six, there was a loud crack of thunder. Chichiri managed to hold his ground, but he did flinch.

"Why were you counting, no da?" Chichiri asked.

"Dunno, it's always been a habit of mine. I think that the time between the lightning and thunder has something to do with how far away the main part of the storm is, but I don't remember exactly." Sakura said, shrugging. "But anyway, I think that the storm should be over in a few hours or so."

She turned and dug back into her bag, but after a few more minutes of digging, she gave up with a sigh. "Darn, I thought I brought it with me."

"Brought what, no da?" Chichiri asked. "If you don't mind my asking."

"Just my Italian textbook. I was gonna do a bit of studying, but I guess I can't even do that." Sakura said, frowning.

"What's 'Italian', no da?"

"Italian is a language, and the most beautiful one at that, in my opinion." Sakura said. She grinned. "It's the language of love…or so I've heard, anyway."

"Why's that, no da?"

"I dunno." Sakura said, sweatdropping.

"Yeah, it's like how they call Japan 'the land of the rising sun'. Why the heck would they call it that?" Hishigatsu questioned, her main focus still being the DS. "Hah! Take _that_, Cell! Gohan can kick your ass any day!"

Sakura barely stopped herself from facevaulting. "Hi-chan, you're unreal. Haven't you ever heard that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west?"

"Yeah, so? Isn't Japan somewhere around Africa or something? Y'know, somewhere up north?" Hishigatsu asked, not even glancing up from the DS.

Sakura stared at her like she had five heads. "I-I'm just gonna keep quiet and plead the fifth on this topic."

"Mm-hmm, whatever." Hishigatsu said, before resuming her cheering. "Hah, bet Buu didn't see _that_ one coming! _I am invincible!!_ Hahahahaha!!"

Sakura and Chichiri sweatdropped and shook their heads.

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(_A Few Hours Later_)

After a full day of rain, the weather finally started to clear up.

Sakura telekinetically lifted Tasuki off of Hishigatsu's shoulder and Chichiri off of her lap. Since their clothes were dry by now, she telekinetically picked up the clothing and gave them to their respective owners, who quickly put them back on.

Hishigatsu shut off the DS, put it back in its case, and tossed it back to Sakura, who caught it and put it away. She then stood up and stretched, almost forgetting that she was only covered by a blanket until she felt said blanket falling. She blushed and hastily fixed the blanket before transforming into her ghost form, so she wouldn't have to worry about the little amount of clothes she was wearing. "I'm gonna go out and take a look around. See how far we strayed off our original path and all."

Sakura nodded and Hishigatsu flew out. Sakura stood up, a lot more modestly than Hishigatsu, and picked up her clothes, before moving towards the back of the cave to change, where it was dark and she wouldn't be seen.

Tasuki silently pushed Chichiri in her direction, grinning, and Chichiri reached back and whacked him over the head, blushing furiously.

Just as Sakura came back into the light, fully clothed, Hishigatsu flew back into the cave, a grin on her face. "Guess what I found!" she said in a happy, sing-song voice.

"Anou…" Sakura said, sweatdropping. "I dunno, what?"

"I found an onsen!!" Hishigatsu exclaimed happily, flying over to the bags and grabbing a bunch of things like fairly-dry towels, some soaps, and the driest pair of clothes she could find.

Sakura, upon hearing the word 'onsen', also had the same reaction. The two girls rushed out of the cave happily, carrying a pile of various bath-related items each…and forgetting something very important.

Or should I say two some_**ones**_. (sweatdrop)

The boys stared at the cave entrance in a daze, still trying to process what the heck had just happened in those few seconds.

Then, to make matters worse, they heard the sound of horse hooves right behind them.

"W-We…should move…" Tasuki said shakily.

Chichiri nodded and the two of them sped off and dove behind Sakura's bag as the horse tried to, for lack of better terms, make a snack out of them. (sweatdrop)

"See, _this_ is why I hate horses!!" Tasuki exclaimed.

Chichiri sweatdropped. "No it isn't, no da."

"**Well now it is!!**"

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(_With the girls_)

Sakura frowned. She and Hishigatsu had just gotten to the onsen and put their stuff down; they hadn't even undressed yet. "Hey Hi-chan, why do I get the feeling that we're forgetting something?"

They both paused, blinked, and dashed back to the cave, exclaiming, "We forgot the guys!!"

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The two girls ran into the cave. Hishigatsu quickly dragged the horse outside and tied it's reins to a nearby tree, while Sakura checked on Chichiri and Tasuki.

She walked over to her bag, seeing as that was where the horse had been nipping at, and pulled it aside. She laughed when she heard them sigh in relief upon seeing her instead of the horse.

"It's not funny!" Tasuki exclaimed, glaring and blushing out of embarrassment at the same time.

"Hai, hai. All joking aside, you two okay?" Sakura asked.

"Hai, no thanks t' _some_ people who ran off 'n' left us in a cave wi' a hungry horse!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"Gomen nasai…" Sakura said, frowning and looking away slightly. _I'm such an idiot…forgetting them and thinking only of myself…and then joking around about it on top of that…_

Chichiri whacked Tasuki in the back of the head. "I think that's enough, Tasuki-kun." he turned to Sakura. "Ignore him, no da. We're fine, so you don't have to worry. And we're not mad at you either, no da." he sent a warning glance to Tasuki, who shut up, annoyed.

Hishigatsu came back into the cave. "What're you apologizing for? We _both_ forgot." She walked over to Sakura and the boys. "So, we going back or what? All our stuff is there."

"But what do we do about them?"

Hishigatsu shrugged. "Guess we have to bring them with us."

Sakura and Chichiri blushed, while Tasuki grinned. Hishigatsu caught Tasuki grinning and blushed. "Hentai! Osuwari!"

(thud)

"I…deserved that…" Tasuki said, his voice muffled from his face being pressed to the ground, and his body was twitching.

Sakura and Chichiri sweatdropped.

"When I said we'd bring them with us, I _meant_ that we'd leave them far away enough so that they can't see us, but within hearing distance." Hishigatsu said, glaring at Tasuki and blushing slightly.

"I-I guess that's alright…" Sakura said timidly. She smiled. "I trust Chichiri-kun to keep Tasuki-kun in check."

Tasuki finally managed to push himself off of the ground. "An' jus' what th' hell's that supposed t' mean?!"

Hishigatsu rolled her eyes. Instead of responding, she just bent down, picked Tasuki up by the back of his shirt, and flew out of the cave, Tasuki yelling profanities the whole way.

Sakura and Chichiri sweatdropped and shook their heads.

"I _still_ don't get how they didn't break up by now." Sakura said. Chichiri nodded in agreement.

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(_A Few Minutes Later_)

"Aaah…I needed this."

"Mm-hmm, same here."

Hishigatsu had gotten to the natural onsen first, and had dropped Tasuki (literally) in the tall grass a few yards away from the onsen before settling down into the onsen. Sakura arrived a few minutes later, and after putting Chichiri down (and checking if Tasuki was still alive) she shyly undressed and joined Hishigatsu in the onsen.

Tasuki, meanwhile, had managed to get up, and was currently pouting and muttering the occasional vulgarity under his breath.

"Just get over it, no da!" Chichiri quietly exclaimed after Tasuki had been pouting for a good 10 minutes-or-so, sighing exasperatedly.

Tasuki grinned suddenly. "Yer right, what'm I doin', sittin' 'ere mopin'? I'm wastin' valuable time!"

Tasuki started sneaking towards the onsen when Chichiri grabbed him and pulled him back. "Are you crazy?!" he yelled as quietly as he could, praying that the two girls couldn't hear either of them (and luckily for the two seishi, they couldn't).

"Nani-des' ka (What is it)? Y' wanna come with?" Tasuki asked cluelessly, and Chichiri's hand had a formal meeting with his forehead in exasperation.

"Iie, I don't want to 'come with', no da!" he said as calmly as he could. He let out another exasperated sigh. "But fine, if you want to go, then it's your funeral, no da."

Tasuki shrugged and stealthily walked towards the onsen, trying to make as little noise as possible.

"Erk! I didn't think he'd _actually_ go, no da!!" Chichiri exclaimed nervously, before letting out a resigned sigh. He sat down on the floor and rested his head in his hands. "This is going to end badly, no da."

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Tasuki carefully made his way through the bit of grass in front of the onsen. He tentatively pushed the remaining grass out of his line of view. Luckily for him, Sakura and Hishigatsu were just standing up, so he got a full view.

And _**un**_luckily for him, as they stood up, they caught sight of him staring at them.

Sakura fell back down into the water as fast as she could, a quick "eep!" escaping her throat. Hishigatsu, on the other hand…

"Grrr…**HENTAI!! OSUWARI!!**"

(thud)

"**OSUWARI OSUWARI OSUWARI OSUWARI OSUWARI OSUW**--"

Sakura reached up and quickly covered Hishigatsu's mouth before she killed Tasuki--literally, as usual.

Chichiri winced as he heard the exclamations and the 'thud's, before sighing. "I warned him, no da." Chichiri muttered to himself, shaking his head.

"AND YOU, CHICHIRI! DON'T THINK YOU'RE NOT IN DEEP TROUBLE TOO!" Hishigatsu exclaimed after moving Sakura's hand.

If Chichiri hadn't been sitting, he would have fell over, startled. "What did I do, no da?!"

"WE TOLD YOU TO KEEP AN EYE ON TASUKI AND WHAT DO YOU DO?! **YOU LET THAT GODDAMN NO GOOD PEEPING-TOM OVER HERE!!** SAKURA-CHAN, SIT 'IM!"

Chichiri winced, anticipating his body having a fast meeting with the hard ground, but instead all he heard was, "Hi-chan, you _really_ need to calm down. It's not Chichiri-kun's fault. _Tasuki-kun_ was the one that came over here, not him."

Chichiri sighed in relief. _Thank Suzaku for Sakura-chan, no da…I'd probably be dead a thousand times over without her, na no da!_

Hishigatsu pouted. "You always take _his_ side."

"Iie, that's not true. I only take whichever side I think is right." Sakura said.

As Sakura and Hishigatsu mock-fought, Tasuki pulled himself to his feet and back to where Chichiri was waiting for him before collapsing. Chichiri checked for a pulse and Tasuki sweatdropped.

"I'm not dead, y'know." Tasuki said.

"Not yet anyway. Hi-chan's going to kill you later, no da." Chichiri said.

Tasuki grinned. "Nah, I know 'er, she's jus' playin' 'round."

Chichiri sweatdropped. _If that's what you call playing around, then I'd hate to see what you call being serious, no da._

Tasuki stood back up and grinned. "That poundin' may've hurt like hell, but it was **definitely** worth it. You should've seen it! Damn, an' I thought _Hi-chan_ had a good body, bu' _**Sakura-ch**_--"

Chichiri somehow managed to tower over Tasuki, flames surrounding his angry figure. "Erase every bit that you saw of her from your hentai mind before I do it for you." his voice was low and menacing, despite his mask still in place, and no questions needed to be asked about which 'her' he was talking about.

Tasuki, however, was unfazed. "An' what're _you_ getting' so worked up 'bout, hm?" he questioned, grinning teasingly at him. "Jealous much?"

Chichiri's face went from angry to embarrassed, and his face turned red. "Daa…I'm not jealous, no da! It's just…you shouldn't drag Sakura-chan into all of this…and you shouldn't have even gone there to begin with…and…a-anou…daa…"

Tasuki chuckled. "I knew it. Y' should've jus' came wi' me!"

Chichiri took off his mask, his face still red. "Look Tasuki, let's get something straight. You may enjoy doing things like this, but _I don't_. So stop--"

Tasuki grinned. "_Suuuure_ ya don't."

"Tasuki-kun, I'm serious, no da!"

"And you said 'no da' _because_…?"

"…"

Tasuki grinned. "C'mon, go!" He pushed Chichiri forward. Unfortunately, Chichiri hadn't expected Tasuki to do that, and couldn't keep his footing. He wound up falling forward through the grass and landing by the onsen, near where Tasuki had been.

Unfortunately for Chichiri, the girls had just stood up when he'd fallen through the grass.

Even _more_ unfortunately for Chichiri, he looked up at them, and they caught sight of him.

And even _**more**_ unfortunately for Chichiri, said monk couldn't tear his eyes away from the two girls. And the two girls knew this, considering he didn't have his mask on and couldn't hide his wide eye or his blush.

All-in-all, he just dug himself _very_ deep, and all within a few seconds. That's gotta be a new record! (XD)

Tasuki, who hadn't meant to _actually_ push Chichiri out, was watching from another spot while still hidden in the grass. _Oh, __**this**__ should be good!_

Sakura slowly sank down into the water, her face crimson. _If anyone up there's listening, you can go ahead and kill me now._

Hishigatsu was growling low in her throat, veins quickly popping up on her head.

Both actions seemed to snap Chichiri out of his shocked daze. "I…I mean you…he… I…and he…I didn't…daa…" he sputtered, trying to get everything out nervously and failing miserably. "I'm…in trouble, aren't I."

"DAMN STRAIGHT YOU'RE IN TROUBLE, YA DAMN HENTAI!! WHAT THE HELL IS WITH GUYS IN THIS WORLD?!" Hishigatsu yelled.

"It's not my fault, no da!! Tasuki-kun pushed me and I fell out here!"

"Mm-hmm. And I bet _Tasuki-kun_ made you stare at us too, ne?" Hishigatsu questioned sarcastically.

Chichiri looked away and blushed heavily.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you!" Hishigatsu exclaimed, knowing very well that she was contradicting herself.

"Daa…"

Sakura sighed and pulled Hishigatsu down into the water, much to Chichiri's relief. "C'mon Hi-chan, stop torturing him and embarrassing yourself."

Sakura-chan, what're you doing?! You can't just let him get away with this!!

Wakatta, wakatta.

Chichiri was about to thank Sakura, but the 'arigatou' died in his throat when he saw Sakura's smirk. _That…doesn't look good…no da._ he thought nervously.

"Why don't we let Chichiri-kun join us? After all, he's already out here." Sakura said calmly, and Tasuki, Chichiri, and Hishigatsu all had shocked looks on their faces.

Sakura-chan, what're you **doing**?! We're supposed to be _torturing_ him, not--

Trust me Hi-chan. Chichiri-kun's not like Tasuki-kun. Just watch.

She telekinetically lifted Chichiri, who was now **very** red, flailing, and nervously demanding to be put down, and brought him towards the steaming-hot water.

"Yamete, no da!!" Chichiri cried, chibi. "I told you, It wasn't my fault, no da!!"

Sakura ignored him and, with an evil smirk on her face, lowered him down so his body touched the steaming hot water.

He managed to shoot up, even with Sakura's telekinetic hold on him. He yelped in pain and thought some very un-monk-like thoughts, most of which were directed at a certain red-haired seishi.

Hishigatsu and Tasuki were rolling with laughter, but Tasuki stopped laughing and winced as he felt through his seishi connection more than actually heard the many colorful threats on his life. _Man, didn' think that 'is punishment was __**that**__ bad…_ he thought, sweatdropping.

Sakura lifted Chichiri away from the water, laughing. "Gomen. I know I shouldn't be laughing--or be doing _any_ of this to you; it's completely out of character for me--but next time, try to be a bit more careful, hm?" She held her hand about an inch under him, as if she was holding something round, and it was then that he realized that there was a reddish tint in the air around him.

"A barrier? Why…" he trailed off in confusion.

Sakura chuckled. "If you thought the water was hot just _now_, then you _definitely_ wouldn't have survived touching the water the temperature it _actually_ is."

Hishigatsu stopped laughing and frowned. "Even when you're _torturing_ someone you're too nice!"

Chichiri nodded in agreement, but as he was nodding, he happened to look down--and it happened that Sakura was standing so that the top half of her breasts was above the water without her realizing. He quickly tore his gaze away and blushed heavily, but he didn't look away fast enough.

"EEK! **HENTAI!!**" she exclaimed, and she accidentally threw the barrier she was holding (with Chichiri still in it) without realizing what she did.

Hishigatsu and Tasuki were both, once again, rolling with laughter. It was a good thing that Hishigatsu was laughing too hard and loud to hear Tasuki's laughter, or else he'd be as good as dead.

"Sakura-chan!!" Chichiri exclaimed.

Sakura snapped out of her embarrassed state and realized what she did. "Ack! Chichiri-kun!!" she quickly stopped him with her telekinesis and slowly lowered a now swirly-eyed Chichiri to the ground.

"Daaa…" _Tasuki-kun, by Suzaku's name, I __**will**__ get you for this…somehow._ he thought, sweatdropping.

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(_A Few Minutes Later_)

"Gomen nasai!!"

After Chichiri was safely on the ground (and after Sakura got Hishigatsu to stop laughing), the two girls got dressed and returned to the cave with the guys, where they decided they'd stay for the night. Sakura was currently on her hands and knees, her forehead pressed to the ground, apologizing and begging for Chichiri's forgiveness. Chichiri, feeling a bit (read: _**very**_) awkward, was trying to convince her that he wasn't mad at her.

Needless to say, Chichiri's discomfort only fueled Hishigatsu and Tasuki's amusement, and their amusement only fueled Chichiri's discomfort, so it was turning into a never-ending cycle.

"Daa…I told you already, Sakura-chan. I'm not mad at you!"

"Yes you are, you're just trying to make me feel better!" she said, and it sounded like she was on the verge of tears. "Gomen nasai!! I never should've done something so stupid!"

Chichiri was getting nervous and exasperated at the same time. "Onegai, don't cry, no da! I'm not mad at you, and you had every right to do what you did." he sent a glare at Tasuki when saying this, and Tasuki looked away innocently.

"Iie, I had no right to do what I did, and I wouldn't be surprised if you hate me now!" Sakura exclaimed.

For some reason, that last statement really hurt Chichiri. "I don't hate you…I could never hate you…" he said softly, blushing.

Sakura lifted her head and looked at Chichiri in confusion and surprise. "Nani…?"

"And…and I'm not mad at you. Remember how you told me that you could never get truly mad at me?" when Sakura nodded, he smiled. "Well, I could never get truly mad at you either."

"Hontou ni?"

"Hontou ni."

They both smiled at each other. Until…

"Awwwww! Kaaawwwaaaiiiii deeeeeesu!!" Hishigatsu and Tasuki both cooed teasingly, before cracking up.

Sakura and Chichiri both blushed, the small moment ruined. Sakura stood up, dusting herself off awkwardly. "Well, I guess we should get to sleep now. We have to head out early tomorrow and travel all day if we wanna catch up for lost time."

Hishigatsu and Tasuki both stopped laughing and groaned, to which Sakura rolled her eyes. "What the heck're _you two_ complaining about?" she pointed at Hishigatsu. "You get to float…" she then pointed at Tasuki. "…and you get to be carried! _I'm_ the only one who has to walk here, so _I_ should be the only one complaining here."

"Leave them be, it's not worth it. That's just who they are, no da!"

Hishigatsu and Tasuki both mock-glared at Chichiri. "And what's _that_ supposed to mean?"

"Exactly what he said, that's what." Sakura said. "Now c'mon, be quiet. I'm going to sleep. Oyasumi nasai."

Sakura laid out a blanket on the floor and laid down, closing her eyes. The others soon followed suit, the girls not even bothering to put the boys in the bag.

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(_A Few Hours Later_)

"Chichiri-kun, Tasuki-kun, wake up."

Sakura quietly tried to get the two boys up as Hishigatsu looked around outside.

"You _sure_ you sensed something? 'Cuz I don't _see_ anything…" she said, frowning.

"I'm positive. It was only for a second, but I _know_ I sensed something strong…and dark." Sakura said quietly, before turning her attention back to the boys, who were still asleep on a blanket on the floor. "Guys, wake up!"

"Nnn, wha'?" Tasuki mumbled, opening his eyes and slowly sitting up. "Why're y' gettin' us up s' early?"

"I sensed someone heading in our direction…I have a feeling it might be that Haruko guy you mentioned, because I could only sense his ki for about a second before it was completely concealed again. I'm not entirely sure, but I don't wanna take any chances either. Can you help me get Chichiri-kun up?"

Tasuki grinned, now fully awake. "No prob'! Watch 'n' learn!"

He stood up, went over to Chichiri, and bent down so he was right near Chichiri's ear. "OI, CHIRI! GET UP!!"

"DAA!!" Chichiri jumped up high in the air, chibi, while Tasuki laughed.

Sakura sighed and carefully caught Chichiri before he hit the ground and hurt himself. "Tasuki-kun, I meant get him up _quietly_."

"Well, y' neva said that!" Tasuki said, grinning.

Sakura sighed again. "Daijoubu, Chichiri-kun?" when he nodded, she continued. "We need to leave, quickly and quietly. Get in the bag, and keep quiet until I tell you everything's okay." for Chichiri's benefit, she added, "I'm pretty sure I sensed Haruko, but even if I didn't, it's better to be safe than sorry."

Chichiri and Tasuki nodded. Sakura helped them into the bag and the two girls set off, Hishigatsu in her regular form and guiding the horse on foot.

After a few minutes of walking around, the girls were about to give up and just set up camp again, when…

"Ah, there you two are."

The two girls turned around calmly, and came face to face with Haruko.

"Can we help you?" Sakura asked innocently, at the same time looking at Haruko in suspicion. Chichiri-kun, describe Haruko to me again.

He appears to be a young man, around 15 years old, with black hair, black eyes, and was wearing dark-colored clothes no da. But either way, I'm pretty sure it's him. His voice sounded the same, no da.

"I believe you know what I want." Haruko said coldly. "Hand over the seishi and I won't have to hurt you."

Hishigatsu chuckled. "_You_? Hurt _us?_" she transformed into her ghost form. "I'd like to see you try!!" she charged at Haruko, and went to punch him. But he teleported away before her punch hit. Using her momentum against her, he reappeared above her and elbowed her down to the ground, hard.

He landed gracefully on the ground next to her. "I told you, just surrender the seishi and you won't have to fight."

"Fuck off!" was her response. She went intangible and disappeared into the ground. Haruko looked around, confused and startled.

"Hah!!" she flew straight up out of the ground, hitting him under the chin with an uppercut and sending him flying up and backwards.

Meanwhile, Sakura had snuck off to the side and tied the horse to a nearby tree. She then put the bag down. "Onegai, stay here!" she said to the two boys, who were standing in the pocket so that their heads were sticking out (so they could see what was going on), before taking her sword from one of the packs on the horse's back, tying the sheath around her waist, and joining Hishigatsu.

Sakura unsheathed her sword as she charged into the battle, catching Haruko by surprise and slicing him in the arm.

He winced but took no other knowledge of the wound. He shot a giant ki blast at the two girls, who both let out a startled yelp and reacted at the same time. When the smoke from the impact of the ki blast cleared, both girls laughed and relaxed the defenses they'd set up. Apparently Hishigatsu had grabbed Sakura and gone intangible at the same time that Sakura had thrown up a barrier.

Haruko scowled. "So, you girls think it's a joke, ne? Well I'll show you…" he charged at the two girls, pulling out two hidden daggers.

Sakura gasped and Hishigatsu cursed. The two jumped out of the way to dodge the surprise attack, but Hishigatsu didn't move fast enough and wound up receiving a cut on her arm matching Haruko's, only a bit deeper. Her hand flew to her wound and she cursed fluently.

Meanwhile, Tasuki cursed just as heavily when he saw Hishigatsu get cut. "Dammit, I gotta do _somethin'!_" he exclaimed angrily.

"Tasuki-kun, I don't think there's anything we _can_ do at this point, no da." Chichiri said, sighing dejectedly. "We just have to pray that the girls can handle this one on their own."

"Fuck that! This is th' secon' time she's had t' defend me! I ain't gonna stand 'round and make m' koi fight m' battles fer me, an' I won' let 'er get hurt in th' process!" Tasuki exclaimed, jumping out of the pocket and running towards Hishigatsu and Sakura. "I'll distract 'im if I have ta, but I gotta do _somethin'!_"

"Tasuki-kun, matte!!" Chichiri exclaimed, jumping out and running after Tasuki.

Tasuki jumped back and a foot landed right where he'd been. _Damn, close call._ He thought, nervously sweatdropping. He looked up and saw that it was Sakura's foot, and that she was struggling to keep Haruko's daggers back using her sword.

Haruko looked down and grinned evilly, and, curious, Sakura glanced down from the corner of her eye and spotted Chichiri trying to pull a fuming Tasuki back. "Dammit, do you two _ever_ listen to me?!" she exclaimed through gritted teeth. She felt Haruko move his daggers towards the two boys. "Oh no you don't, you twisted freak!" she growled, pushing her sword back a bit more before swinging it upward, throwing him slightly off balance. This gave Hishigatsu, who just tied up her cut, time to charge over and punch Haruko, throwing him completely off balance for a few seconds.

"Dammit, what the hell're you two doing?! Get going, now!!" Hishigatsu exclaimed, and Tasuki growled.

"Iie! I ain't gonna sit 'round and let you two protect us like we're some sort've babies 'r somethin'!" Tasuki exclaimed.

"Dammit Tasuki-kun, you're it no position to argue, now go!" Sakura exclaimed, frustrated, and lightly pushed the two boys using her telekinesis. She got back into an attack stance as Haruko got back on his feet.

"Not gonna happen. Can't let them get back to safety, now can I?" Haruko said mockingly, disappearing.

Hishigatsu cursed. "Temee…"

Sakura sheathed her sword, closed her eyes, and relaxed her body, trying to sense him. She gasped and quickly shot what could barely be called a ki blast a few meters above Chichiri and Tasuki, hitting Haruko on the spot and sending him flying away from them. "C'mon you two, hayaku!!" she exclaimed, redrawing her sword and moving so that she was between where the boys where and where Haruko lay. She breathed a bit heavier than before, that ki blast having used more energy than it should have, on account of her lack of training in that area. The two boys nodded and ran back towards the bag, as Haruko got up.

"You will die, and no one shall stop me!! Muahahahahaha!!" he exclaimed, and both the girls and the seishi sweatdropped.

"This guy's wack." Hishigatsu said, and Sakura sweatdropped even more.

"Ignoring that." she said in response to Hishigatsu's statement. She got back into an attack position, as did Hishigatsu.

Haruko shot a ki blast at the two girls, which Sakura reflected back at him. He jumped and fired a series of ki blasts, but this time they were all aimed at the boys. Said boys yelped and ran faster, nervously sweatdropping, while Sakura concentrated on covering them with a barrier and keeping her own defenses up at the same time. Hishigatsu charged at Haruko, going intangible so that she passed through all of the ki blasts before firing a few streams of ectoplasmic energy. In order to defend himself, Haruko stopped firing ki blasts and instead quickly teleported out of the way. Hishigatsu cursed. "Dammit, stand still and fight like a man!!"

"Gomen, but it's not in my nature to fight like a man when fighting a girl." Haruko said from behind her. Growling, Hishigatsu swung around, intending to punch him, but he disappeared and her fist just hit air.

Sakura, meanwhile, had let down the barrier and had been watching Hishigatsu, to make sure she was okay. Luckily, she managed to see the air flicker out of the corner of her eye to reveal Haruko. She quickly ran towards him and swung her sword at him, but he was faster and managed to block her swing with one of his daggers. With the other dagger, he sliced the hand that she held her sword with, causing her to drop her sword and allowing him to send her flying back with a quick ki blast.

"Sakura-chan!!" Chichiri and Hishigatsu both exclaimed, the former stopping in his tracks and instead running towards the injured girl, a concerned, red-headed seishi running after him, while the latter flew towards Haruko and tackled him, knocking him to the ground before flying up a bit and hitting him with an energy beam.

Haruko chuckled evilly, as if the attack hadn't fazed him in the least. Once again, he disappeared. He reappeared behind Hishigatsu in midair, elbowing her in the back of the neck and sending her crashing down to the ground painfully. She attempted to stand up, but couldn't. _Damn jerk struck a nerve…figuratively __**and**__ literally!!_

Chichiri and Tasuki were still running towards Sakura when they were stopped by Haruko. He smirked. "Shi ne, Suzaku no shichiseishi." he quickly muttered an incantation, and the two seishi found themselves unable to move.

"Kuso!!" Tasuki exclaimed, as they both tried, in vein, to move their bodies.

Then Haruko started muttering another spell, and the two seishi watched in fear as a giant ball of black ki started to form in front of him. Once it had finished forming a few seconds later, he jumped back and sent it flying towards the two seishi. It hit them dead-on, and they both screamed out in pain.

Both girls lifted their heads at the same time that the ki blast came into contact with the two seishi. "Chichiri-kun! Tasuki-kun!" Sakura exclaimed at the same time Hishigatsu exclaimed, "Tasuki! Chichiri-kun!"

Both girls struggled to get up, but stopped in shock when they saw Chichiri and Tasuki's bodies start to get bigger, and bigger, until the two were back to their normal size.

The two girls sighed simultaneously in relief.

Chichiri and Tasuki looked at themselves in surprise, before smiling in relief, the pain from the blast gone as fast as it came.

They quickly went to help the girls onto their feet, Tasuki helping Hishigatsu over to Sakura at her request, but before the girls could say anything, Chichiri and Tasuki turned their attention to Haruko, who was slowly getting over the shock that he'd used the wrong spell…twice. And trying to figure out what were the odds that the second wrong spell he'd used would be the antidote for the first. (sweatdrop)

Tasuki grinned evilly and cracked his knuckles, while Chichiri took off his mask and tucked it in his kesa before smirking ever so slightly. "Sumimasen girls…just give us a minute." Chichiri said in a surprisingly out-of-character manner. Sakura and Hishigatsu's eyebrows were raised in surprise and confusion, but they managed to nod, albeit a bit dumbly, before the two seishi coolly advanced towards a stiff and nervous Haruko.

Haruko nervously tried to inch away, only to be stopped by Tasuki, who'd quickly moved behind him and blocked his escape path. "Where d'ya think _yer_ goin', na?"

He turned around only to be blocked again, this time by Chichiri. "Ne, Tasuki-kun, ready for a much needed stress-reliever?"

Haruko's eyes widened and he gulped nervously. "Tasukete…" he managed to squeak out before the two seishi proceeded to, for lack of better and non-vulgar terms, beat him to a bloody pulp.

Sakura and Hishigatsu watched from the sidelines, one chibi with wide eyes and a huge sweatdrop, the other rolling with laughter. Just try and guess which was which.

After a few minutes of getting beaten, Haruko managed to gather enough energy to teleport away. Chichiri and Tasuki then walked back to the girls. Tasuki had a huge grin on his face, and surprisingly, even Chichiri was grinning slightly after that little scene. "Ahhh, I _definitely_ needed that." Tasuki said, stretching. "It's wha' tha' jerk gets fer shrinkin' us like tha'."

Hishigatsu ran to Tasuki and half tackled, half hugged him. "You baka!! You're such a big, huge, gigantic _**baka!!**_"

Tasuki sighed happily. "Oh, how I love those words." he said teasingly, resting his head on top of hers to make his point. "Hope y' enjoyed bein' taller while it lasted!"

Hishigatsu moved her head out from under his and stuck her tongue out at him. "You're so mean! And after all I did for you too! Hmph!"

Sakura chuckled. "Already they're back to their regular ways."

"Since when did they _stop_ with their 'regular ways'?" a deep voice whispered into her ear with a chuckle, and it took her a second to realize that it was Chichiri, considering that he hadn't really spoken to her in his deeper voice that many times. He surprised her by wrapping his arms around her from behind and pulling her back against his body. She blushed in response to his actions.

"Yeah, you're right." she said, ignoring her blush and the fact that Chichiri was acting surprisingly forward. Instead, she just enjoyed the fact that she was leaning against a now normal-sized Chichiri. "And I'm really glad you guys are okay. For a minute, I thought you were…" she didn't finish her sentence, instead biting her bottom lip, but Chichiri knew what she'd meant.

"I really want to thank you for everything you've done for me these past few days." Chichiri said, resting his chin on her shoulder from behind her and speaking quietly--if not a bit embarrassedly--into her ear. A small blush worked its way onto his maskless face, on account of how forward and out-of-character his actions were, compared to his norm. "I'll find some way to pay you back for everything."

"I-Iie! You don't have to pay me back at all!" Sakura protested. "I did it because I _wanted_ to, so just seeing you guys back to normal is payment enough." she smiled and leaned her head on his, which was still resting on her shoulder.

He blushed a bit more, but smiled nonetheless. _She's such a sweet girl…I can't say if it's love or not, but I definitely feel __**something**__ for her…_

"a-HEM." came two voices in unison, their snickers coming in unison as well.

Chichiri and Sakura immediately jumped away from each other and blushed heavily, while Tasuki and Hishigatsu laughed.

"W-Why don't we get some sleep? It's gotta be past midnight already." Sakura suggested quickly, and Chichiri agreed just as quickly.

"Hai, I could definitely use some rest, no da!"

After the guys tended to the girls' minor wounds, a quick camp was set up and everyone fell asleep.

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IP - Well, this five-part mini series is finally over. ( ( )

Chichiri and Tasuki - (relieved sigh) Yokatta (no da).

IP - Oh c'mon, you two should be glad I didn't just kill you off or something…I had the opportunity twice in this mini-series y'know.

Sakura and Hishigatsu - (sniff sniff) THEY'RE TALLER THAN US AGAIN!! (TT.TT)

Everyone - (sweatdrop)

IP - Anyway, on another note, Chichiri seemed to take a liking to acting OOC after returning to his normal size! (n.n") Maybe he's finally seeing the light, who knows? (I knows, of course, but I ain't tellin'! (n.n)) Regardless, he's gonna fall back into character next chappie, don't worry. (n.n) Well, now that all that's said-and-done, please R&R! (n.n)

((IP - Yes, it's done! _Finally!_ Now I can get back to the less-embarrassing, more-recently-written-and-therefore-a-bit-better chapters!))


	20. Surprise! A Reunion of Comrades

_**DISCLAIMER START**_

IP - Hey folks. Just a reminder, I'm starting to cut down my disclaimers from this chapter on, so (once again) I just wanna say I'm sorry to those of you who actually enjoyed the disclaimers. (n.n) Also, I finally managed to sit down and fix all 14 of my previous chapters (because of the new divider rule that put up), but I can't figure out why everything still looks squashed together. If anyone could help me out with that, I'd really appreciate it! (n.n) Now, who's going to do the disclaimer for me this time?

Chichiri - I'll do it for you, no da! IP-san doesn't own Fushigi Yuugi or anything else created by Watase-sama, na no da. (mumbles under breath) 'Cuz if she did…then Suzaku help us all, no da.

IP - What was that now?

Chichiri - Eheheh…nothing, no da! (n.n")

IP - Alright, then enjoy the chappie! (n.n)

_**DISCLAIMER END**_

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

_**speech**_ speech inside a character's head that's not their own (NOT TELEPATHY)

… telepathy

(…) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

Chapter 15 - Surprise! A Reunion of Comrades

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(_Kutou_)

Yui sighed. For the past three days (the days during which the whole 'mini-series' took place, for those who are wondering), her, Tetsuya, and Suboshi had been searching for the two other Seiryuu no shichiseishi that had been revived; Nakago and Soi. After introductions had been made between Tetsuya and Suboshi (and after Yui convinced Tetsuya that Suboshi wasn't going to use his "weird flying lethal yo-yo things" on them), Suboshi had taken them to his new home and introduced them to his new family, who were honored to have the Seiryuu no Miko in their home. Using the link common to all seishi of the same kami, the trio had searched for the two other reborn seishi, but to no avail.

"Yui-chan, daijoubu desu ka?" Tetsuya asked, sitting down next to her on one of the beds in the inn that they'd stopped at.

"Nnn? Oh, hai, daijoubu." Yui answered, still a bit distracted.

Tetsuya frowned. "Are you sure?"

"Hai, I'm just worrying about whether or not we'll find Nakago and Soi…I know we weren't exactly on the best of terms, but they _are_ my seishi, and I _do_ need to find them."

Now _Tetsuya_ sighed. "Wakatta, wakatta. Demo, I still can't say that I'm looking forward to seeing them…"

"Don't worry. Suboshi…he's changed, I can see it. He's nicer than before…that might be because he was reborn. If that _is_ the case, then maybe we won't have to worry as much about Nakago and Soi."

"I hope so." Tetsuya muttered, shaking his head. "Last thing I need to deal with is a blonde-maniac and a moody weather-queen."

Yui chuckled. "I'm sure _you're_ gonna be helpful in a pinch." she said sarcastically.

"Oi, _I_ don't have any special powers." Tetsuya said, frowning.

"Yet you still manage to magically captivate me." Yui said, smiling. They leaned forward, their mouths moving closer together and their eyes closing in anticipation, when…

Suboshi, whose face was slightly pink from what he was about to witness, coughed loudly to get their attention as well as to break up the awkward (on his part) moment. Yui and Tetsuya blushed from having almost been caught kissing, and moved their faces away from each other reluctantly.

_If Suboshi didn't have feelings for me, I wouldn't mind him seeing us kiss…but I feel that watching us kiss would be like a punishment for him, and I just can't bring myself to do it…_ Yui thought sadly, sighing softly, before turning to Suboshi. "Was there something you wanted, Suboshi-kun?"

"O-Oh, hai! I wanted to tell you that I think I have a solid lead on where Nakago and Soi are, but we'll have to leave now before I lose it!" Suboshi said, and the couple immediately grabbed their things, ready to head back out.

Suboshi grinned. "Yosh! We'll find them for _sure_ this time!"

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(_Two Hours Later_)

" 'We'll find them for _sure_ this time!' he says. (pfft)" Tetsuya mumbled to himself, frowning, as the trio reluctantly set up camp in a forest a ways away from the village they'd been staying at.

Even though Tetsuya had mumbled his statement, it didn't go unheard by Suboshi. "Oi, it's not _my_ fault! I _thought_ I'd had a solid lead to them!"

"A solid lead…to whom?" a masculine voice asked from behind the trio.

"You wouldn't happen to mean _us_, now would you?" a feminine voice questioned, almost teasingly, also behind them.

Yui, Tetsuya, and Suboshi all turned around in surprise, and Yui couldn't help the smile that started to creep onto her face. _Never thought I'd be glad to see __**them**__, kedo…_ "It's good to see you again…Nakago, Soi."

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(_The Next Day; Konan_)

Chichiri slowly opened his eye and sat up, smiling when he saw that he was the first one up. _Feels good to fall back into my old routine, no da…now I can actually have some peace and quiet!_

But that thought was short lived as he sensed someone coming towards them. Before he could even set up a defense, he realized that the person he was sensing seemed familiar. _It couldn't be…_

He smiled when a head full of purple hair popped through the surrounding foliage, followed by a fairly-small, feminine body. "Nur--"

However, he was quickly shushed as Nuriko quietly moved over to where Tasuki was laying, sprawled out. He bent down so that he was right near Tasuki's ear, and took a deep breath.

Chichiri sighed. _Glad to see that Nuriko-kun hasn't changed, kedo…_ he sighed again._ So much for having some peace and quiet, no da…_ (U.U) he then braced himself for what he knew was about to happen.

"OHAYO, FANG-CHAN!!" Nuriko exclaimed very loudly, right in Tasuki's ear, while grinning.

Tasuki let out a stream of curses as he jumped a mile high, startled. "GODDAMMIT OKAMA-CHAN!!" he exclaimed, without thinking. He blinked, once he'd gotten his heartbeat back to it's normal rate. "Chotto matte…Nuriko!!" he grinned, suddenly not angry anymore.

"Nnn, wha's all th' yellin' 'bout?" Hishigatsu mumbled, getting up and rubbing her eyes sleepily. Once she got her eyes to focus, she grinned, barely resisting the urge to glomp the purple-haired bishounen. "Nuriko-san!!"

Sakura yawned, getting up as well. "So much for getting some extra sleep…" she mumbled.

"Nuriko-kun, it's good to see you again, no da. Demo, how did you find us?" Chichiri asked.

"Well…I found _these_--" Nuriko gestured to the three horses not too far behind him. "--and figured you guys were somewhere nearby…though _why_ you guys left the horses behind, I still can't figure out." Nuriko said, frowning. "Care to explain?"

Chichiri, Tasuki, and Hishigatsu all gulped nervously, trying to think of an excuse without having to reveal what had _actually_ happened. Luckily, Sakura, ever the level-headed person (and now fully awake as well), came to their rescue. "Well, y'see, we ran into a group of youkai when we were out looking for you and Mitsukake-san. The horses reared and ran off; we were able to kill the youkai before they got to any of the horses, but we were only able to find the supply horse, and not to mention that some of the stuff was missing from the supply horse--probably fell off from when he was running or something--but anyway, arigatou for finding them and bringing them back to us, Nuriko-san."

Just as Chichiri, Tasuki, and Hishigatsu were about to let out a sigh of relief, Nuriko asked, "Then why did I find them tied up?"

Once again, Sakura casually came to their rescue. She shrugged. "I suppose someone must've found them, and probably was going to come back for them, so they tied them up. Did you find the stuff that's missing from the supply horse?"

Nuriko nodded. "Hai, and I suppose, then, that it's lucky I came around there when I did."

"Hai, arigatou once more." Sakura said. She discreetly shot the two seishi and Hishigatsu a look, and they took the hint, thanking Nuriko as well.

Wow, you're good, no da. Chichiri said, impressed.

Nothing to gloat about; it just means that I'm a good liar, and nothing good comes out of that. Sakura pretty much mumbled, before turning her attention back to Nuriko, who'd lead the horses over to where they'd kept the supply horse.

"Where's Miaka-chan and Taka-kun?" Nuriko asked, looking around.

"They had t' go back t' their worl' 'r somethin'." Tasuki said, shrugging.

"Nuriko-kun, I'm assuming that you know the situation, no da?" Chichiri asked, and Nuriko nodded.  
"Hai…when we--meaning me, Mitsukake-kun, Nakago, Soi, and Suboshi--were, I guess you could call it 'reborn' in lightest terms, Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-seikun told us about everything that's been happening, as well as what needs to be done. I'm assuming that we still have to find Mitsukake-kun?" Nuriko asked, and received four nods. "Alright then, lemme just go back home and get my horse--we're going to need that extra horse for Miaka-chan and Taka-kun, right?"

"Hai, though I'm not sure when they're going to be back…" Sakura said.

Nuriko nodded. "Anyway, I'm assuming that you two are those two girls that Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-seikun mentioned?"

"O-Oh, hai! How rude of us!" Sakura said. "Watashi wa Bara Sakura."

"Watashi wa Kamui Hishigatsu, but just call me by my nickname, Hi-chan." Hishigatsu said, grinning. _You can also call me_ _your number 1 fan! _(n.n)

Sakura smiled and rolled her eyes, knowing what Hishigatsu was thinking.

"Hajimemashite, Sakura-san, Hi-chan." Nuriko said. "As you already know, atashi--" he shook his head. "_Boku_ wa Nuriko."

"Hajimemashite." Both girls said, smiling when he corrected himself.

Nuriko then excused himself, going back to his village nearby to get his horse, while Chichiri, Tasuki, Sakura, and Hishigatsu all set to work packing up camp.

"Arigatou fer comin' up wi' that story!" Tasuki said to Sakura, once Nuriko was out of hearing distance.

Sakura shrugged nonchalantly. "It was nothing. Figured that you wouldn't exactly enjoy relaying that little tale. Besides…" she smirked. "Now Hi-chan and I have prime blackmail material!"

Hishigatsu built on that thought. "Between that and the beads of subjugation…heh heh, you boys'd better be careful!" her and Sakura both grinned, while the two boys gulped nervously.

Nuriko returned a few minutes later with his horse, just as the group had finished packing up camp. He looked at Chichiri and Tasuki curiously. "Y'know, I didn't notice this before, demo…why are you two wearing matching necklaces?"

The two boys looked at each other nervously, while the two girls grinned. "Y'see, Nuriko-san, those aren't just _any_ necklaces; they're called the 'beads of subjugation'." Hishigatsu explained, walking over to Tasuki and toying with his enchanted necklace while grinning. "If I say the word o-su-wa-ri…" she said each syllable of the word separately, for which Tasuki was grateful. "…then Tas-chan here gets a one-way meeting with the ground."

"But if that's the case, then why would Chichiri-kun have them too? Tas-chan I can understand, but _Chichiri-kun_…?" Nuriko asked.

"Yeah _Sakura-chan_, I'd like to know that as well, no da." Chichiri said, poking the brown-haired girl standing next to him. Said girl grinned back at him.

"Na, na, if I told you that, it wouldn't be fun any more!" she said, grinning teasingly and poking Chichiri back. "Besides, what're you complaining about? I've only used them once, and that was the first time you guys got them just so that the beads wouldn't pick up any other command."

"Yeah, but they've _been used_ twice." he muttered, just so that Sakura could hear him.

"_Yeah_, but you're lucky that they weren't used a _third time_ yesterday." she muttered back, and Chichiri turned red under his mask and looked away guiltily.

"Anyway, Nuriko-san…" Hishigatsu said, grinning and happily moving over to Nuriko's side. "I'm very much sure you'd like a demonstration…"

Nuriko grinned as well. "Oh, this I just _have_ to see!"

Tasuki glared at both of them. "Oi, y' can't jus' cause _me_ pain fer _yer_ own--"

"Osuwari."

(thud)

"GODDAMMIT HI-CHAN!!" Tasuki exclaimed, his whole body pressed to the ground.

Nuriko was rolling with laughter, as was Hishigatsu, while Chichiri and Sakura just shook their heads and sighed. "Man, that _never_ gets old!" Hishigatsu said, once her laughter died down.

Sakura sighed again and helped Tasuki back onto his feet, using her telekinesis to break what was left of the spell holding him down, and allowing him to stand back up angrily. Before he could start yelling, she intervened. "Alright, we've wasted enough time as it is; can we go try to find Mitsukake-san now?"

Nuriko nodded, his laughter having died down by now. "Hai, hai, let's go."

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(_Meanwhile; The Palace of the Heavens_)

"One more try, Tenkou-sama! I promise you, I won't fail you--"

Tenkou glared at Haruko, who was on his knees in front of him. "Iie. No more chances. You've proved yourself to be useless. Now, be gone." he flicked out his hand, and Haruko's body turned completely black before disintegrating into nothing within a split-second, not even allowing him the chance to scream out in pain.

"It's a shame; had the boy received more discipline and training, he _might_ have proved himself to be a valuable asset. Unfortunately, we haven't the time for those who aren't fully-trained." Tenkou said, with not even a speck of remorse in his tone.

Silently, he wandered through the halls of the palace of the heavens, going down a long set of stairs and entering a cold, damp room. He grinned maliciously. "I hope you're enjoying your stay…Genbu-_seikun_, Byakko-_seikun_" he spat out the suffix 'seikun' for each of the two captured kami with obvious disgust.

Byakko, in his ferocious tora-form, snarled at him. He tried to claw at the false kami through his magically-sealed cell, but he only got to the bars before a shock was sent throughout his whole body, making him cry out in pain, his cry coming out as a terrifying roar.

"Now now, neko-chan, I would have thought that you'd learn by now." Tenkou said, purposely trying to arouse Byakko's anger. He turned to the ever-solemn Genbu, who had wisely chosen to remain in his human form--to save what little energy he had left--and who had not even attempted to try and break out of his cell or attack Tenkou. "I'm surprised that you haven't tried anything yet, Genbu. Have you no powers of your own?" Tenkou smirked at Genbu.

Genbu matched Tenkou's smirk with one of his own. "I don't waste my energy on fakes. You're not even worth my time."

Tenkou's smirk quickly turned into a scowl. "Not worth your time, eh? How's _this_ for being worth your time?!"

He sent a shock throughout Genbu's body, at least 20 times stronger than the one Byakko received. Genbu fell over, screaming out in pain. Finally, after a minute or two straight of that treatment, Tenkou allowed Genbu to collapse, barely conscious. He walked right through the bars separating Genbu from himself and roughly grabbed the loop of hair on top of Genbu's head, yanking Genbu's head up so that they were face-to-face. "Hopefully that will have taught you your place. I am the ultimate ruler. _You_ are the one who is not worth _my_ time." he threw Genbu's head back down, smirking as it hit against the hard stone floor and knocked him unconscious. A small puddle of blood began to gather around the injured area. "You'd do well to remember that."

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IP - Gomen for the short chappie folks, demo, it seemed like a good place to end it…well, it wasn't exactly _good_, but, ah, you know what I mean! (n.n") I'm happy that we got to hear from Genbu and Byakko, though I can't say that I really enjoyed having Tenkou be so mean to them. (frown) Oh well, he's the _bad guy_, so I suppose it's to be expected. (n.n) And I know gods probably don't bleed, but lets just say that it's because he's in his human-form…or we could just not look at the specifics at all. (n.n") Anyway, please R&R!


	21. Past Relations Part 1

**_DISCLAIMER START_**

IP - Gomen for the delay on this one, minna-san...between my summer assignments, doing volunteer work for community service, and the huge writer's block I've had, I couldn't manage to come up with anything to write for this story! (TT.TT) Gomen ne! I do know where this story is going, and what's gonna happen, but it's the little in-between details I'm having a problem with (sweatdrop) Well, hopefully this chappie is good enough (n.n) Now, why don't we have Nuri-chan say the disclaimer this time, ne?

Nuriko - I'd be glad to, IP-chan (n.n) Ahem...IP-chan doesn't own anything created by Watase Yuu-sama--(takes a flash card handed to him) Anou...but apparently, she claims that she owns Chichiri (sweatdrop)

Chichiri - _DAA?_ (O.O)

IP - (grin)

Nuriko - (shrugs) Your funeral. (edges away)

IP - (blinks) (notices Watase's lawyers closing in) Ehehehe... (grabs Chichiri and runs) While I try to outrun Watase-sama's lawyers, you enjoy the chappie! (n.n")

**_DISCLAIMER END_**

* * *

0o0o0 place/time change (usually (but not always) followed by details in () and _italics_)

_thoughts_ character's thoughts

_**speech**_ speech inside a character's head that's not their own (NOT TELEPATHY)

... telepathy

(...) used for an action (such as a sweatdrop)

* * *

Chapter 16 - Past Relations **Part 1**

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(_Konan; 3 Hours Later_)

"I'm boooooored."

A sigh. "Hai, we know that, you've made sure to inform us once every five minutes of that little fact."

Sure enough, five minutes later...

"I'm boooooored."

Tasuki whacked Hishigatsu, who was sitting in front of him on their horse, over the head lightly. "Urusai, we already know yer bored, tha's no reason t' drive us all crazy." Tasuki growled.

"But it's the only way I can have fun!" Hishigatsu mock-countered. She looked down at an imaginary watch on her wrist. "Oops, five minutes is up! Ahem...I'm boooooored!"

Sakura looked down at her MP3, annoyed. "You're two minutes early." she said sarcastically.

"Darn." Hishigatsu said, frowning. She felt a small pebble hit her in the head, and glared at Sakura, who looked away and whistled innocently.

Chichiri sighed. "If you're so bored, then why not torture Tasuki-kun, like you _normally_ do, no da?"

Tasuki glared at the monk, who chuckled along with Nuriko.

"_Because_, torturing him isn't as fun when he doesn't try to fight back." Hishigatsu said, frowning.

"Okay, how about this; let's play a game." Sakura suggested, putting her MP3 player in her pocket and giving up on trying to listen to music.

Everyone looked at her curiously. "What kind of game?" Nuriko asked.

"Well, I'll say a word, and then you say the first thing that comes to mind, okay?" Sakura said. Everyone shrugged and nodded, seeing as there was nothing better to do at the moment.

"Okay, first word...anou..." Sakura frowned, thinking. "How about akai (red)?"

"Suzaku-sama." Chichiri said, shrugging.

"Tasu-chan!" Nuriko and Hishigatsu both said, laughing.

Tasuki rolled his eyes. "How 'bout th' annoyin' girl sittin' in front 'a me?"

Said red-headed girl poked him in the arm, but made no comment.

"'kay, next word...how 'bout mizu (water)?" Sakura said.

"Err...I'd have to say tranquility, I guess." Nuriko said.

"How about thirst, as in you just reminded me that I'm thirsty!" Hishigatsu whined. Sakura rolled her eyes and tossed Hishigatsu a water bottle from her bag. Hishigatsu grinned and began drinking, effectively keeping her quiet.

"Mizu..." Tasuki mumbled darkly, his eyes glazed over with painful memories.

Sakura flinched, remembering Tasuki's bad experiences with water--not only couldn't he swim, but then there was also the thing with Hikou/Kanki...Sakura figured that Chichiri wasn't doing well either, seeing as he hadn't made any comment. She decided to speak up. "Mizu...when I think of mizu, I not only think of gentleness, peace, and tranquility, but I also think of the unattainable. A wave that comes close enough to touch, but pulls away before you can grasp it..."

Chichiri looked down at Sakura, surprised by her statement, but said nothing.

"Next word...anou..." Sakura frowned, unable to come up with another word.

"How about star-crossed lovers?" Hishigatsu said, grinning and leaning back on Tasuki to make her point.

Sakura smiled, and assumed a dramatic stance--well, as dramatic a stance as she could come up with while sitting on a horse. "Romeo, Romeo, where for art thou Romeo? Err...something about denying my father's name..." she trailed off, and her and Hishigatsu both laughed.

Chichiri, Tasuki, and Nuriko were all confused--which was obvious, considering that Shakespeare didn't exist in ancient China.

"Gomen ne, forgot that you guys wouldn't know about Romeo and Juliet." Sakura said.

"What's that?" Nuriko asked.

"Simply put, it's a story about two warring families; the princess in one family and the prince in another fall in love, and even though they're not allowed to see each other, they're willing to do anything to be together. Sadly, in the end they both wind up dead. Basically, it's a tragic story about people deeply in love, brought together by fate, or as we call them, star-crossed lovers." Hishigatsu summarized.

Sakura blinked in surprise. "You actually _paid attention_ when we read that in class?"

Hishigatsu glared playfully and Sakura laughed quietly.

"Okay, let's get back to the game. It's actually pretty fun." Nuriko said.

"Hai!"

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(_Back in Kutou_)

"N-Nakago-san, Soi-san!" Tetsuya exclaimed in surprise, and was going to move in front of Yui to protect her (even though he moved _behind_ Miaka for _protection_ the _last_ time he saw Nakago), when Nakago shook his head.

"I'm not going to do anything to you. Actually..." Nakago frowned and sighed, before kneeling down a foot or two away from a shocked Yui. "I would like to beg your forgiveness, Yui-sama, for everything I did to you, and to your friend. Gomen nasai, miko-sama."

Yui stared at the blonde in shock and surprise before giving in and nodding. She walked over to Nakago and put a hand on his bowed head, causing him to look up in surprise. "You have no need to apologize to me. I'm just as much at fault as you. It's Miaka-chan and her seishi that you'll need to apologize to."

Nakago nodded and stood up. "Arigatou for your kindness, miko-sama."

"So, I'm surprised; we didn't expect to find the two of you at the same time." Suboshi said.

Nakago and Soi smiled at each other, Nakago taking Soi's hand into his own. Both actions caused Yui, Tetsuya, and Suboshi's eyes to go wide in shock, but nothing could have prepared them for what Nakago said next.

"Well, that's because once we were reborn and found our way to each other, we came to a mutual agreement." Nakago smiled--a genuine smile. "We're going to get married."

Silence...

More silence...

Even _more_ silence...

"(O.O) YOU'RE _**WHAT?!**_"

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(_Back in Konan; A Few Hours Later_)

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"NO!"

"...are we there yet?"

"Hai, as a matter of fact, we are."

"Really?"

"**NO!**"

Chichiri sighed, and Nuriko and Tasuki looked back and forth between the two girls, as one would do in a ping-pong or tennis match.

"Are we there yet?"

Sakura cursed a bit under her breath out of frustration. "FINE! Fine, you wanna stop, we'll stop!" she snatched the reigns from Chichiri and forced the horse to a stop. She then angrily jumped off the horse.

She stormed off into the dense trees nearby and, a minute or two later, a large (boom) could be heard. All was silent as the seishi and Hishigatsu looked at the place she'd disappeared into with wide eyes. Sakura emerged from the forest, smiling as if nothing had happened. "Well, are we going to stop for now?"

Everyone save for Sakura sweatdropped.

"I swear, if y' get us kill'd by 'er jus' 'cuz yer bored..." Tasuki left the whispered threat hanging, and Hishigatsu nodded, her eyes still a bit wide.

"I guess we're going to keep going, then." Sakura decided, and though she was still smiling, her tone dared anyone to challenge her.

No one did, for fear of being blasted to oblivion.

Sakura climbed back on the horse and Chichiri fidgeted, quite nervous about having a living time-bomb sitting in front of him.

They set off again, and this time everyone was silent, too scared to even attempt to start a conversation.

After a few minutes, Sakura wordlessly closed her eyes, leaned back against Chichiri's chest and fell asleep. Everyone sweatdropped except for Chichiri, who blushed behind his mask.

"How can she be so angry one minute and falling asleep the next?" Nuriko asked, bewildered.

"That's Sakura-chan for you. Unpredictable as ever." Hishigatsu said, shrugging.

"Yea, but it w's _yer_ fault that she blew up 'n th' firs' place, Hi-chan no baka. At leas' 'pologize wh'n she wakes up." Tasuki said.

"Fine, fine, whatever." Hishigatsu said. She looked at Chichiri and grinned. "So Chichiri-kun, comfy?"

Chichiri blushed a bit more, but ignored her.

"You'd better not do anything, ahem, _inappropriate_ to her." Hishigatsu said, smirking.

"_**Da?**_" Chichiri exclaimed, but quickly clamped a hand over his mouth, not wanting to wake Sakura up. "I-I'm a _monk_, no da!"

"That apparently didn't apply _yesterday_." Hishigatsu said, and Chichiri blushed even harder, making two light-pink patches appear on the cheeks of his mask.

"I told you, it wasn't my fault, no da!"

"Suuure. Then who's fault was it?"

"It was Tasuki-kun's fault!"

"Don't pin this on Tasuki!"

"What are you two fighting about?" Nuriko interviened. Chichiri and Tasuki flinched slightly, but luckily Hishigatsu decided to be nice...but really, just how nice can Hishigatsu be? (sweatdrop)

"Oh, nothing. Just that we caught Chichiri-kun peeking on us when we were bathing." she said slyly.

Nuriko looked at Chichiri with wide eyes.

"D-Da! It's not true! Tasuki-kun pushed me, I swear!"

"Suuure I did." Tasuki said, grinning.

Chichiri glared at Tasuki--though it didn't really look like a glare with his mask on.

"Nnn, wha's all th' noise 'bout?" Sakura mumbled, her short nap coming to an end due to all of the arguing. She let out a small "eep!" when she realized that she'd fallen asleep on Chichiri. "Gomen nasai! I didn't mean to...gomen nasai!"

"It's alright, no da. No harm done." Chichiri said.

"Yeah, Chichiri-kun was quite comfortable with you snuggling against his chest." Hishigatsu said, smirking.

"_Hi-chan!_" Sakura exclaimed, blushing. Chichiri was also blushing behind his mask, partially because he was embarrassed, but mostly because she was right, as much as he didn't want to admit it.

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(_Kutou; A Few Minutes Later_)

After the shock had worn off, Yui, Tetsuya, and Suboshi all congratulated Nakago and Soi. The new couple then brought Yui-tachi to their house, where the two had been staying together up until then.

"Douzo." Nakago said, opening the door and stepping aside to let the others in first.

"D-Doumo." Yui said, still unused to Nakago being so honestly-polite.

"Onegai, make yourselves at home." Soi said.

They all entered the home--it was a nice-sized house, with a few chairs, a table, a fireplace, a 'kitchen', and two or three other rooms that they assumed were bedrooms or something of the like. Yui, Tetsuya, and Suboshi each sat down in a chair as Soi served them tea.

_Gods, this feels so odd..._ Yui thought, watching the couple with interest. _But at the same time, it's kinda nice. Soi always loved Nakago, it's good that they're able to be together now._

Tetsuya, meanwhile, was looking around from his seat, feeling a bit out of place. _I wonder why I was able to come here..._

He saw a small glow out of the corner of his eye, and he turned to see Yui's bag glowing slightly purple--or more specifically, the compartment where she was keeping the map. But before he could say anything, the glow disappeared. He dismissed it as 'one of those book-world things' and continued to wonder how people could survive without things like indoor plumbing and TV.

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(_Konan_)

Chichiri perked up suddenly, sensing something heading their way..._two_ somethings, actually...

"Err...Tasuki-kun..." he said, as he saw a red glow appearing above Tasuki and Hishigatsu. Hishigatsu had enough sense to go intangible and jump off the horse just before two figures fell from the red light.

"ITAI!" all three of them exclaimed (Miaka, Taka, and Tasuki, that is).

Hishigatsu laughed at them, moving away from the tangled heap of people and turning tangible again.

Nuriko rolled his eyes and stopped his horse, dismounting easily. He walked over to the three tangled people (and the horse, which was somewhere in there) and proceeded to...separate them, for lack of better terminology.

Tasuki wound up being thrown against a nearby tree, while Taka was lucky and was thrown _in_ the tree instead. Nuriko gently helped Miaka up before hugging the startled girl. "Miaka-chan! It's so good to see you again!"

It took a minute or two for her to register what just happened, but when she did, she grinned. "Nuri-chan!" she exclaimed, hugging him back.

"What about us...?" Tasuki and Taka both said, with swirls in their eyes.

Hishigatsu rolled her eyes and helped Tasuki to his feet before smirking and making the tree intangible, causing Taka to fall out and have a nice, formal meeting with the ground--face-first.

Tasuki and Hishigatsu were both rolling with laughter, while Chichiri and Sakura just sighed and shook their heads.

"And just when I thought this group couldn't get any louder...or more violent." Sakura said. Chichiri just nodded in agreement.

After a few minutes of catching up, the group decided to keep going for another few hours, much to the annoyance of a certain two people.

"Oh c'mon, didn't we go far enough for today?"

"Yea', why don' we jus' stop fer a break? What harm'll it do?"

Everyone ignored the two redheads, as hard as it was. Finally, after another two hours of traveling (and another two hours of complaints) the group gave up and stopped for the night.

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(_Palace of the Heavens_)

"It's almost time..."

"Wakatta."

"I will tolerate no failures."

"Hai, hai, wakatta."

"It would also do you well to show me some respect. After all, I'm giving you back the man you love."

"I'll show you respect if this actually works."

"Oh, but it **will** work, don't worry. But why am I telling you this when you already _know_ it's going to work?"

"..."

"I thought so. Now go."

"Hai."

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(_Konan; The Next Day_)

The group ended up setting off later than they'd wanted to, because Miaka, Hishigatsu, and Tasuki all refused to wake up. So after a few loving calls to Miaka via Taka (and some fake gagging in the background via Nuriko), and a not-so-nice scene involving Sakura evilly rolling a sleeping Hishigatsu onto a sleeping Tasuki and causing them both to wake up, as well as causing Hishigatsu to think that Tasuki was trying to take advantage of her, they finally managed to set off--well, after they managed to pull Tasuki out of the 50-foot-deep Tasuki-shaped crater in the ground, anyway. (n.n")

But of course, a few minutes later, the whining started. But this time, there was an extra person adding fuel to the fire...

"Anata, I'm hungry!"

"I'm bored."

"I'm hungry!"

"When're we gonna stop?"

"IIIII'm huuuuungryyyyy!"

"Are we there yet?"

"When are we gonna eat?"

Sakura was just about ready to take a gun from somewhere and shoot herself to put herself out of her misery when she felt something. Now, she wasn't as adept at ki-sensing as Chichiri was, but she _was_ able to sense people with a lot of ki.

And this person had a _lot_ of ki.

She felt Chichiri tense behind her, and knew that he'd sensed it too.

"I-It can't be..." Chichiri breathed out, before urging the horse to a gallop. He tightened his hold on Sakura, so she wouldn't fall off. As he drew closer to the familiar ki, he began to smell something. _Impossible...kedo...there's only one person that I know that wears that fragrance..._

Tasuki, Taka, and Nuriko sped up their horses, as well as the supply horse, and caught up with Chichiri. "What's goin' on?" Tasuki asked, but Chichiri didn't reply, too anxious at the moment.

After a minute or two more, they were able to make out a figure...

...a _familiar_ figure...

...with blue hair, and brown eyes...

Chichiri, being the first to have reached the figure, gasped as he pulled his horse to a stop.

_No...way..._ Sakura thought, a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

Chichiri slid off his horse, still in shock. He shakily removed his mask, getting a sense of déjà vu.

The figure smiled, spotting Chichiri. "It's been a while, Houjun."

"H...Hikou..."

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(_Kutou; Meanwhile_)

Yui-tachi spent the night at Nakago and Soi's house, and were now eating breakfast while discussing what they'd do next.

"Seiryuu-sama never told me what to do after I found my seishi..." Yui said. "Our best bet would be to go meet up with Miaka."

"Hai, but Konan, while it's the smallest of the four countries, is still a fairly large country. We wouldn't have the slightest idea where to look." Nakago said.

"Isn't there any way we could contact them? To ask where they are?" Tetsuya asked. Everyone looked at him, seeing as he'd been very quiet throughout their discussion, and he fidgeted nervously. "Well?"

"Perhaps..." Nakago said. "I don't think that I'd be able to contact Miaka-san, though. She doesn't have that much experience with telepathy, as far as I know, so sudden-long-distance telepathy might be too taxing on her mind. The one who I'd have the easiest time contacting would be Chichiri-san, kedo...I doubt he'd be willing to open his mind for the connection."

Yui nodded and sighed. "I guess we should just wait for now."

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"H...Hikou..."

Tasuki, Taka, and Nuriko all stopped their horses and got off. Taka and Nuriko quickly moved in front of Miaka, while Tasuki moved in front of Hishigatsu, growling.

"Houjun, don't look so shocked--didn't think you could get rid of me that easily, did you?" Hikou asked, smiling. "Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama brought me back to life so I could help you guys. From what I hear, you need all the help you can get."

"H-Hikou...are you really...this isn't a trick, is it?" Chichiri asked shakily, his mask falling to the floor.

"Well, if you don't believe me, maybe I should tell everyone about the time that you went into your mother's wardrobe and--"

"_Hikou!_" Chichiri exclaimed without thinking, blushing out of embarrassment. He gasped. "Hikou...it really is..."

Hikou smiled. "Looks like you're gonna have to put up with me for a bit longer, ne?"

"Hikou!" Chichiri exclaimed, running over to him and hugging him, crying.

"It's good to see you again too, Houjun. And I apologize for everything I did 2 years ago." Hikou said quietly and sincerely.

Tasuki and Taka still eyed Hikou with suspicion, but Nuriko, Miaka, Hishigatsu, and Sakura all smiled, easily moved by the scene.

"I still don't trust him..." Tasuki growled under his breath, unconsciously reaching up to his tessen.

Hishigatsu put a hand over his, while Sakura stepped in front of him, her arms crossed. "Don't start any unnecessary fights." she looked at Taka, whose defense was obviously up. "That goes for you too." she said to him.

"Sakura-san's right. Besides, I trust him." Miaka said. "He's Chichiri-kun's friend. If Chichiri-kun says that he's not some sort of fake, then I believe him, and if _Chichiri-kun_ trusts him, then _I_ trust him."

"Arigatou, miko-sama." Hikou said, and Miaka jumped--she hadn't realized that he was listening in on her, as well as Chichiri, who was now standing next to him and embarrassedly drying his eye.

"Miaka-chan..." Chichiri said, before smiling. "Arigatou for having such faith in my judgment."

"I'd also like to take this opportunity to apologize to you, miko-sama..." Hikou said, before turning to Tasuki. "...as well as to you, Tasuki-san. Onegai, I hope that we can put the past behind us and be friends."

Tasuki growled "Dammit, y' expect me t' jus' go 'n' say "oh sure, le's be friends" after what y' did t' me...what y' almost made me do t' _**Mi-chan?**_" Tasuki exclaimed.

"Tasuki, yamete!" Hishigatsu said, as Tasuki reached for his tessen.

Before Hikou could come to his own defense, Sakura jumped in. "Look Tasuki-kun, I know Hikou-san did some...bad things to you. Demo, it wasn't his fault; he was under Tenkou's influence then! He's a good person now, I know it; Chichiri-kun knows it too, _everyone_ here knows it, and I'm sure even _you_ acknowledge that he's different."

Hikou looked at Sakura in surprise. "Arigatou, shoujo-san." he said.

"Ah, sumimasen, we never got around to introducing ourselves." Sakura said. "Watashi wa Bara Sakura."

"Watashi wa Kamui Hishigatsu, otherwise known as Hi-chan." Hishigatsu said, walking up next to Sakura. She knew that Hikou was Sakura's third favorite character (Chichiri being her first, and Chiriko being her second), so it came as no surprise to her that she'd jumped to Hikou's defense in a heartbeat.

"Well, it's an honor to meet such lovely ladies such as yourselves." Hikou said, speaking more to Sakura--though that might be attributed to the fact that Tasuki had pulled Hishigatsu back the minute Hikou'd begun to speak.

Sakura blushed and giggled quietly, especially when Hikou took her hand and kissed the back of it. _He's more chivalrous than I imagined he'd be!_

"Hikou, enough." Chichiri said, glaring daggers at the now-grinning man. "It's good to see that you haven't changed...or matured..." Chichiri said dryly.

Hikou laughed. "And it's good to see that _you_ haven't changed either. You're still the goody-two-shoes that you used to be."

Chichiri blushed as everyone else laughed, even Tasuki gave in to his laughter.

Tasuki was the first one who stopped laughing, though. He took note of how even Taka had now lowered his guard, and gave in to a sigh. "Oi, Hikou."

Hikou turned to face Tasuki. "Hai?"

Tasuki frowned, but it wasn't really angry as much as it was resigned. "I...I'm willin' t' put th' past behind me fer now, but I'm warnin' ya--y' try anythin', an' yer toast, y' hear?"

Hikou smiled. "Loud and clear."

"Anyway, Hikou, would you mind explaining everything from the start?" Chichiri asked.

"Sure, no problem." Hikou said. He blushed slightly as his stomach rumbled loudly. "Although I haven't eaten in quite some time..."

"I'll make us all something to eat." Sakura said, and Miaka rejoiced.

"Yatta! Food!" she exclaimed, and everyone sweatdropped.

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(_A Few Minutes Later_)

"Itadakimasu!"

The group dug into the small lunch that Sakura had prepared for them.

"Wow, you're a good cook, you're cute, you're nice...talk about the full package!" Hikou said, and Sakura turned a deep red.

"I-I-I'm not..."

"Boy, Houjun, you're one lucky guy, to have a woman like her." Hikou said, and Chichiri choked on what he'd been eating while Sakura turned a deeper red.

"We're not together!" they both exclaimed.

"Oh, so you're free then, Sakura-san?" Hikou asked, his smile widening to a grin.

Sakura's face remained a nice tomato-red. "H-Hai...I suppose..."

Hishigatsu grinned. "Ooh, looks like someone's got the hots for Sakura-chan!"

Now Hikou blushed. "I-Iie, that's not true, I was just curious!"

"Can we _please_ focus?" Chichiri asked, trying desperately to get off the embarrassing topic.

"Right, right...So like I said, Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama brought me back to life to help you guys out."

"When? And how are you supposed to help us out?" Taka asked.

"It was about a month ago, before this whole incident started, I believe. Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama came to me--well, Suzaku-sama was actually dragging a grumbling Seiryuu-sama along, but I suppose that's beside the point--" everyone sweatdropped. "--and they asked if I'd be willing to help you guys out. And it wasn't like I'd turn down a chance to try and make things right between Houjun and myself...so of course I accepted."

"Arigatou...kedo, this is going to be dangerous. And as good of a brawler and a pickpocket as you were, that won't help you to defend yourself against what _we're_ up against." Chichiri said, bringing up a bit of the past without realizing it.

"Hikou-san was a _pickpocket_?" Sakura asked, wide-eyed.

"Pickpocket is such a bad term...I like to refer to myself as a 'skilled borrower of other's belongings that have monetary worth'." Hikou said, grinning.

"In other words, a pickpocket." Sakura said flatly, rolling her eyes but smiling nonetheless. _Cool, I found out something new about Hikou!_

"Not only was he a pickpocket, he was a common thief in general, when he was little." Chichiri said, grinning.

"Oh, don't even start, Houjun. You know that you were right there with me, and you enjoyed stealing from that merchant from time-to-time."

Now pretty much everyone looked at Chichiri in surprise, and Tasuki voiced the surprised question in everyone's mind. "Ch'chiri used t' _steal?_"

"Oi, I wasn't a monk all of my life, y'know." Chichiri said, huffing. "And I suppose that also proves that I _wasn't_ a 'goody-two-shoes', ne Hikou?"

"Hai, but _who_ was the one that most of the time went _back_ to the merchant, returned the stuff, and apologized?"

Chichiri blushed. "You _know_ why I did that!"

As they continued to argue/debate, Sakura smiled. _This just keeps getting more and more surprising...I'm learning more things about Chichiri and Hikou that I never knew...or never even would have guessed..._ she thought happily. "So, any other little secrets from the past you'd like to share, Hikou-san?"

"Oh, plenty!" Hikou said, grinning evilly. "How about we start with the first time Houjun here had sakè?"

Chichiri blushed even more and hastily covered Hikou's mouth. "I think you've said enough."

"Iie, iie, do tell." Tasuki said, grinning.

Hishigatsu rolled her eyes. _Amazing how fast he warms up to Hikou when he wants to get something out of it._

Hikou grinned and moved Chichiri's hand out of the way. "Gomen naa, but I think we should save some stories for the road."

Chichiri sighed. "Can we go back to the original topic, _please_?"

"Hai, but I've already told you everything."

"Yeah, but like I said, I don't want you coming; it's going to be too dangerous." Chichiri said.

"Ah, I suppose I _did_ forget to tell you something. Eheheh, gomen naa."

Everyone sweatdropped. "So what'd you forget to tell us?" Nuriko asked.

"Suzaku-sama and Seiryuu-sama gave me back the powers I had before--power over water, nothing more." Hikou amended quickly, when he saw Tasuki's features harden and Miaka glance down at the floor.

"Fine, bu' like I said, you try anythin' an' yer dead." Tasuki said, though he didn't say it with as much malice as the first time.

_That's good, I guess he's warming up to Hikou._ Sakura thought. "So, should we keep going now?"

"Where are we going?" Hikou asked.

"We still need to find one more of our seishi, Mitsukake-kun, and then we need to meet up with Yui-chan and her seishi--providing she's found them." Miaka said.

"But we don't have a horse for Hikou-san..." Sakura said.

"Wasn't there a town nearby, or was that Nuriko-san's town?" Hishigatsu asked.

"It was my town, but it's not too far back from here. I should be able to get back there in a few hours if I ride hard." Nuriko said.

"How about I come with you? I can contact Chichiri-kun once we've gotten the horse, and he can teleport over and ride the horse back, because it's probably gonna be too hard to bring both horses back before it gets late." Sakura said. "If that's alright with both of you, that is." she added quickly.

"Iie, that sounds like a good idea, no da." Chichiri said.

"Alright, then we'd better go now if we don't wanna get back too late." Nuriko said. He helped Sakura onto the horse before getting on in front of her. "Hang on tight!" he said, before speeding off.

As Hishigatsu watched them leave, she pouted. "Not fair. _I_ wanted to go with Nuri-chan."

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(_A Few Hours Later_)

Nuriko, Sakura, and Chichiri (who'd teleported to Nuriko's town after Sakura contacted him) finally arrived back where the group was waiting. Unfortunately, they arrived too late to continue on--on account of Nuriko's new parents making Nuriko stay and help out with chores for two hours--so they had to stay there for the night.

Sakura sighed. "One _more_ day wasted. But at least Tenkou hasn't bothered us of late."

But just as she said this, she sensed something else coming towards them.

Actually, there were a _lot_ of 'something else's.

And the worse part was that their ki was completely dark, like Haruko's had been.

"Me and my big mouth..."

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* * *

IP - Muahahahahaha, cliffhanger! (evil grin)

Hikou - (o.o") Houjun, I _finally_ understand what you meant when you warned me about agreeing to join this story.

Chichiri - (shrugs) I suppose you'll get used to it after a while, no da.

IP - (n.n) Hikou-sama! (grin) (glomps Hikou) I'm so glad I brought you in! Alright, all you readers out there, please review and tell me what you thought about this chappie, as well as about the fact that I brought Hikou-sama in (n.n)

Hikou - (ignoring the fangirl/authoress clinging to him) And if anyone wants to hear some interesting stories about things Houjun and I did when we were kids, don't hesitate to ask! (n.n)

Chichiri - (groan) Iie, please, hesitate.

IP - Haha, gotta love that Hikou. Well, please R&R! (n.n)

(Just a note--I wasn't entirely sure about Hikou's eye-color; I think it's a reddish-brown sort of color, but I don't have all that many good pictures of him, and the picture on the back of my vol. 17 is a bit faded, so I can't really tell. Plus I haven't seen much of the anime, sadly, so I can't really refer to that for the eye-color either. Gomen ne if his eyes aren't brown, and if anyone knows his actual eye-color, please tell me, if only to satisfy my curiosity (n.n) Arigatou!)


End file.
